Giannoukakis Dimitris (1898 - 1991)

Born in Hermoupolis, Syros in 1898, he studied painting and printmaking at the Fine Arts School of Dresden (1921- 1927) under Ferdinand Dorsch and Richard Müller, and continued with open studies in Paris (1929). Upon his return to Greece he worked as art director of Aspioti-ELKA Graphic Arts in Kerkyra (1930-1933). His interest on graphic art remained with him in subsequent years, as evidenced by his printmaking work.
He presented his first solo exhibition at the Stratigopoulou Gallery in 1930. An engraver as well as a painter, he was a founding member of the Group of Greek Printmakers and took part in the first Panhellenic Exhibition of Original Printmaking in Athens in 1938.
In his painting he presents mostly landscapes, referencing either expressionism or, sometimes, post-impressionism. In his extensive printmaking work he used mostly copperplate, initially in its traditional monochrome version and later in colour: he was among the first to use colour copperplate in Greece, towards the late ’50s. Representational mastery characterises his work from the outset, although gradually he adopted a two-dimensional rendering of his subjects with certain expressionist and cubist elements. Landscapes and genre themes are his main subject areas, to which he gradually added compositions with nudes and still lifes. He practised also lithography, often using it to illustrate books and other publications, as well as postage-stamp design.
He presented his work in solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad. Examples include the exhibitions “16 Artistes Hellenes”, Bulgaria (1954); “Contemporary Greek Artists”, Israel (1962); “Art Hellenique Contemporain”, Switzerland (1967); “Gravures Grecques”, Cameroon (1980), etc. He participated also in the Biennales of Venice (1934, 1940) and Alexandria (1963), where he was awarded, the International Exposition of Paris (1937), several Panhellenic exhibitions (award in the 1938 event), etc. In 1962 he was awarded the silver medal of the city of Paris.
His works can be found at the National Gallery in Athens, the Municipal Galleries of Athens, Piraeus, Thessaloniki and Rhodes, the collections of the National Bank, Alpha Bank and in many museums in Greece and abroad.