Energetic lines and pulsating points in Panos Pristouris’ woodcut prints
Art Space ΕΚΤόΣ – Greek Printmakers Association – Ι.Drosopoulou 17Α, Athens
Opening: Wednesday 11 October, 18.00 – 21.00
Duration: From Wednesday 11 October until Saturday 11 November 2023
Visiting days and hours: Wednesday and Friday at 18.00 – 21.00, Saturday 12.00 – 15.00
**On Saturday 28th of October the art space will be closed
Contact info: www.haraktes.gr / info@haraktes.gr
The Greek Printmaking Association invites you to the solo printmaking exhibition “IMPRINTS OF TRUST” of Panos Pristouris, from 11 October until 11 November 2023. The exhibition features selected black and white and color woodcuts which have been created during the academic year 2022 – 2023.
Panos Pristouris’ work encapsulates strong iconographic elements, clarity of forms as well as it entails an ongoing experimentation on themes, sometimes expressed through representation or even abstract compositions. Printmaking unravels as a means of introspection, but also as a way of establishing a connection and a deeper understanding of the relationship between the self, the world and the surrounding environment. His artistic trajectory has been shaped through his academic studies on printmaking, his personal systematic engagement with the medium and his role in art education. In his recent work the artist explores depictions of his own body, as well as the internal expressiveness and the multiple tones and textures of point and line, while encountering internal psychological and emotional transitions that emerge through the various stages of the creative process.
The concept of line and point are explored, along with their combination, their organization in the engraving work and ultimately their chromatic rendering. Through the creative process of engraving, inking and printing, points and lines gain energy, vitality, and movement is emphasized. Within this context of recognizing and re-examining the structural elements of an artistic work, Panos Pristouris does not hesitate to include parts of himself or his whole silhouette into the illustration.
The artist fragments the image of his own body and places it in a position from where he can self-observe and introspect himself. By performing this dual role, he attempts to reinvent the embodied self through idiosyncratic compositions. In doing so, he shifts the viewer’s perspective from close-up to long shot; from the fine detail of texture to the comprehensive whole picture; from proximity and intimacy to distance and detachment. In varying the point of observation of the body each time, the artist renegotiates the notion of boundaries – both towards himself and the spectator – counterbalancing the relationship between the inside and outside, the self and the world, reinventing a new vocabulary for interpreting identity that ultimately opens up an intimate space of trust, self-awareness and empowerment.
Curatorial text: Vassia Magoula, Art historian – Museologist
Short Artist Biography
Panos Pristouris studied Computer Science at the University of Ioannina, earning a master’s degree in the field of Technology from the Computer Science and Engineering department. Additionally, he graduated from the department of Fine Arts and Sciences of Art with a focus on painting. From the very beginning, printmaking captured his interest. He completed his internship through the Erasmus+ program at the ‘Print Club Torino’, a laboratory of printmaking and screenprinting, in Turin. Since 2020, he has been working as a substitute art teacher both in secondary and primary education, at Public Vocational Training Institutes, while also conducting printmaking workshops for all age groups. He also participates in educational programs as a lecturer and trainer, promoting the art of printmaking both in secondary education and adult educational settings. Furthermore, he has been actively participating in exhibitions, both solo and group, in Greece and abroad. His latest solo exhibition took place at the Epigraphic Museum of Athens in June 2022 and was the first fully accessible and inclusive exhibition in Greece. In 2023, he curated an exhibition of printmaking by his students and individuals with disabilities from the Center “MOV PIKSIDA”. The exhibition was also presented at the 2nd Panhellenic Inclusion Festival NEVRONAS at the Technopolis in Athens. He is a member of the Chamber of Fine Arts of Greece and an active member of Greek Printmakers Association. You can find his work at the following link: www.panospristouris.com, as well as at his Instagram profile: panos_pristouris.
Financial support was provided by the Ministry of Culture.