Greek Heart. Russian Soul: Solo Exhibition of Albina Akritas in Thesaloniki Within the Framework of the Cross Culture Year Russia-Greece

Dates: December 1-18, 2016
Venue: Art Gallery of the Society for Macedonian Studies
1 Nikolaou Hermanou, Thessaloniki, Greece
Curator: Nikita Ogurtsov

The Art Gallery of the Society for Macedonian Studies presents a solo exhibition of the People’s Artist of Russia, Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts Albina Akritas.

The exhibition featuring 45 canvases by the artist has been organized by the Ministry of Culture of the RF, the State Museum and Exhibition Center ROSIZO in partnership with the Society for Macedonian Studies under the auspices of the Consulate General of Russia in Thessaloniki and financial support of Ivan Savvidi Foundation.  

Albina Akritas is a Professor, Winner of the State Prize of the Russian Government, Member of the International Union of Artists, holder of the Gold Medal of the City of Moscow. Her works are in collections of major state  museums in Russia and other countries, as well as in private collections.

Albina Akritas was born in Moscow in 1934 in a Greek family. She received a classic education in I. Repin St. Petersburg Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Working in the style of Russian classical realism she likes to experiment and adds her Hellenic view of the world to her canvases. The artist lives in Moscow, writes poetry and is actively involved in teaching and public activities.

The two countries and the two cultures have merged in her work.  Counterparts at the exhibition are her  pictures “A. Pushkin is Playing Cards with Anna Akhmatova” and “Diogenes Is Speaking with Aristotle”, the canvases “Hector Is Parting with Andromache” and “The Soldier Parting with his Wife Before Going to the Front”, “Amazon is Fighting the Enemy” and “Russian Women Building Antitank Fortifications Near Moscow in 1941”.

“Since ancient times, the Greek art has been actively perceived by Russian people and was widely popular in this country. The great icon- painter Theophanes the Greek, master of Russian landscape Arkhip Kuindzhi and many other Greek artists created a lot of masterpieces that enriched the Russian cultural legacy. Preserving and developing Russian traditions they also brought in their special Hellenic view of the world.

Today, a vivid example of the fusion and enrichment of the two cultures is the creative work of the People’s Artist of Russia Albina Akritas. The exceptional craftsmanship and adherence to Russian realistic school together with the irrepressible passion of the Greek temperament add to the uniqueness and peculiarity of each work of the master.

I am confident, that the exhibition of Albina Akritas in Thessaloniki is our common contribution to the building of bridges between the peoples of  Russia and Greece” – Vladimir Medinsky, the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation.

The exhibition is planned to be attended by Albina Akritas, representatives of the Russian Ministry of Culture, President of the Society for Macedonian Studies Mr. Asanasios Karasanasis and the Russian Consul-General in Thessaloniki Alexander Scherbakov.  





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