The Municipal Art Gallery of Ioannina ( el, Δημοτική Πινακοθήκη Ιωαννίνων) is an art museum in

Ioannina Ioannina ( el, Ιωάννινα ' ), often called Yannena ( ' ) within Greece, is the capital and largest city of the Ioannina regional unit and of Epirus, an administrative region in north-western Greece. According to the 2011 census, the c ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

that has been open in its current building since 2000. The collection of over 500 items ranges from classical to modern paintings and sculptures.

Location

Since 2000 the gallery has been housed in the Pyrsinella Mansion at 1 Korai Street & 28 October Street in Ioannina. This is a neoclassical building dating to around 1890. Neoclassical elements include the lintels, balcony

corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the s ...

s and window frames. It was built by the engineer Vergoti for the bibliophile and art lover Basil Pyrsinella, who was mayor of the town for many years in the 1920s and 1930s. He left all his fixed and movable property to the municipality in 1958.

History

The gallery first opened in 1960 in the Mela building, and was the first regional municipal gallery in Greece. The collection grew in part through purchase but mostly through donations from collectors and artists. In 1965 the gallery was closed due to housing problems, but part of the collection was housed in the

Archaeological Museum of Ioannina The Archaeological Museum of Ioannina is a museum located in Litharitsa Park in the centre of Ioannina, Greece. The museum contains many artifacts unearthed in the surrounding area such as Palaeolithic tools, from Kokkinopilos, Asprochaliko and ...

. The gallery was reopened on 20 February 2000 in the Pyrsinella Mansion.

Collection

Dennis Vella 1820-1884 Portrait of a woman, 1870

The gallery has a permanent collection of about 500 works of art by Greek artists, including paintings, prints and sculptures. The pictures range from the pyrrhonist academic style of the

Munich School Munich School ( el, Σχολή του Μονάχου) is the name given to a group of painters who worked in Munich or were trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Munich (german: Münchner Akademie der Bildenden Künste) between 1850 and 19 ...

through

impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

and

humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

to modern Greek art. Artists include

Nikolaos Gyzis Nikolaos Gyzis ( el, Νικόλαος Γύζης ; german: Nikolaus Gysis; 1 March 1842 – 4 January 1901) was considered one of Greece's most important 19th century painters. He was most famous for his work '' Eros and the Painter'', his first ...

Georgios Jakobides Georgios Jakobides (Γεώργιος Ιακωβίδης; 11 January 1853 – 13 December 1932) was a painter and one of the main representatives of the Greek artistic movement of the Munich School. He founded and was the first curator of the Nati ...

, Spyridon Vikatos, Sophia Laskaridou,

Georgios Roilos Georgios Roilos ( el, Γεώργιος Ροϊλός; 1867 – 28 August 1928) was one of the most important and influential Greek painters of the late 19th-early 20th century. He belonged to the so-called "Munich School". His major works include h ...

Thalia Flora-Karavia Thalia Flora-Karavia ( gr, Θάλεια Φλωρά-Καραβία, 1871–1960) was a Greek artist and member of the Munich School who was best known for her sketches of soldiers at war. Life Thalia Flora was born in 1871 in Siatista, Western Mac ...

Konstantinos Parthenis Konstantinos Parthenis (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Παρθένης; 10 May 1878 – 25 July 1967) was a distinguished Greek- Egyptian painter, born in Alexandria. Parthenis broke with the Greek academic tradition of the 19th century and in ...

Konstantinos Maleas Konstantinos Maleas (Κωνσταντίνος Μαλέας) (Constantinople, 1879 - Athens, 1928) was one of the most important Post-impressionist Greek painters of the 20th century. Along with Konstantinos Parthenis, he is sometimes considered Gr ...

Nikiforos Lytras Nikiforos Lytras ( el, Νικηφόρος Λύτρας; 1832 – 13 June 1904) was a Greek painter. He was born in Tinos and trained in Athens at the School of Arts. In 1860, he won a scholarship to Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Munich. After co ...

Demetrios Galanis Demetrios Galanis ( el, Δημήτριος Γαλάνης, 17 May 1879, Athens – 20 March 1966, Paris) was an early twentieth-century Greece, Greek artist and friend of Picasso. In 1920, the year he completed his ''Seated Nude'' (private coll ...

Yannis Tsarouchis Yannis Tsarouchis ( el, Γιάννης Τσαρούχης; 13 January 1910 – 20 July 1989) was a Greek modernist painter and set designer who achieved international fame, and was "known in particular for his homoerotic subjects," including so ...

Spyros Vassiliou Spyros Vassiliou (Greek: Σπύρος Βασιλείου; June 16, 1903 – March 22, 1985) was a Greek painter, printmaker, illustrator, and stage designer. He became widely recognized for his work starting in the 1930s, when he received the Bena ...

, Giorgios Gounaropoulos,

George Bouzianis George Bouzianis ( el, Γιώργος Μπουζιάνης; german: Jorgos Busianis; November 8, 1885 – October 23, 1959) was a major Greek expressionist painter. Biography He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts with teachers ...

Panayiotis Tetsis Panayiotis Tetsis (Greek: Παναγιώτης Τέτσης; 1925 – 5 March 2016) was a Greek painter. Tetsis was an exponent of the post-impressionistic seascape tradition. Life and work Born in 1925 on the island of Hydra, where he spen ...

Alekos Fassianos Alekos Fassianos ( el, Αλέκος Φασιανός, 13 December 1935 – 16 January 2022) was a Greek painter. Life and career Fassianos was born in Athens in 1935. After graduating from the Athens School of Fine Arts, he moved to Paris, Fr ...

Aglaia Papa Aglaia Papa ( el, Αγλαΐα Παπά, 1904–84) was a Greek painter. Life Aglaia Papa was born in Corfu in 1904. Her family lived in Janicat, then in the Ottoman Empire, now in Albania. Her older sister Katina Papa (1903–57) would become ...

, Vaso Katraki,

Michael Tombros Michael Tombros (or Michalis Tombros, el, Μιχάλης Τόμπρος, 12 November 1889 – 28 May 1974) was a Greek sculptor who was influential in introducing avant-garde styles into Greece. Life Michael Tombros was born in Athens in 1889, ...

Theodoros Papagiannis Theodoros Papagiannis ( el, Θεόδωρος Παπαγιάννης, born 1942) is a Greek sculptor. His work is held by many collections and stands in public places in Greece and elsewhere, including his sculpture "The Runners" at O'Hare Internat ...

and

Athanase Apartis Athanase Apartis ( el, Αθανάσιος Απάρτης, 24 October 1899 – 1 April 1972) was a Greek sculptor. His busts of famous people and monumental works stand in many public places in Greece. Life Athanase Apartis was born on 24 Octob ...

Events

The gallery frequently stages temporary exhibitions and events. In October 2011 the gallery hosted an exhibition of the work of Epirus photographer Kostas Balafas. In February 2012 "The Sound of Austria" presented works of Joachim Lothar Gartner, Christian Eder, Lui Janele and Thomas Kröswang. In October 2015 the museum organized an exhibition to introduce school children to the causes, effects and consequences of the wave of refugees. The exhibits of painting, sculpture and photography, explained by five actors, introduced children to the experience and feelings of the refugees and encouraged them to empathize with them. On 23 November 2015 "Art 31" opened, a group exhibition of the Epirus Association of Graduates of Higher Schools of Fine Arts. Dimitris Giotitsas, president of the Constantine Cultural Center, said that in the present adverse environment artists could unite behind the slogan ""culture against the crisis." An exhibition named "Touched Art" opened on 18 January 2016, arranged with students of the Fine Arts School,

University of Ioannina The University of Ioannina (UoI; Greek: Πανεπιστήμιο Ιωαννίνων, ''Panepistimio Ioanninon'') is a university located 5 km southwest of Ioannina, Greece. The university was founded in 1964, as a charter of the Aristotle Un ...

. Unlike most art exhibitions it invited visitors, whether sighted or not, to explore the works through touch. University students gave tactile guided tours and taught about artistic creation with regard to blindness and visual impairment. File:Municipal Gallery of Ioannina - Virgin and Child with Evangelists.jpg, ''Virgin and Child with Evangelists'' (1804, unknown artist) File:Municipal Gallery of Ioannina - Archangels Michael and Gabriel 1772.jpg, "Archangels Michael and Gabriel" (1772) File:Vassileios Chatzis - The island of Pamvotis.jpg,

Vassileios Chatzis Vasileios Hatzis or Vassileios Chatzis ( el, Βασίλειος Χατζής, 1870 – 1915) was a Greek painter who was best known for his seascapes. Life Vasileios Hatzis was born in 1870 in Kastoria. His family was involved in shipping, and h ...

''The island of Pamvotis'' (1898) File:Nikolaos Lytras - Marika Apostolou.jpg,

Nikolaos Lytras Nikolaos Lytras ( el, Νικόλαος Λύτρας; Athens, 2 May 1883 – 1 December 1927)Brie ...

''Marika Apostolou'' (1906) File:Ali Dino - Caricature, 1917.jpg,

Ali Dino Ali Dino ( el, Αλή Ντίνο), also known as Ali Dino Bey ( sq, Ali Bej Dino; el, Αλή Ντίνο Μπέης, 1890–1938) was an Albanian cartoonist and a Member of the Greek Parliament. Biography Dino was born in Chios, in the Vilayet of ...

''Caricature'' (1917 File:Panos Aravantinos - Model for the First Act of the work of Carl Maria von Weber Oberon.jpg,

Panos Aravantinos Panos Aravantinos ( el, Πάνος Αραβαντινός; Corfu, 1886 – Paris, 4 December 1930) was a Greek and German opera scenery and costume designer and decorator. Life Aravantinos was born on the island of Corfu, and was educated in b ...

''Model for 1st act of ''

Oberon Oberon () is a king of the fairies in medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', in which he is King of the Fairies and spouse of Titania, Queen of the Fairi ...

'' by

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (18 or 19 November 17865 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and critic who was one of the first significant composers of the Romantic era. Best known for his opera ...

'' (1922)

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

* {{refend Art museums and galleries in Greece Museums in Ioannina Museums established in 1960 1960 establishments in Greece