Nikolaos Lytras ( el, Νικόλαος Λύτρας;

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, 2 May 1883 – 1 December 1927)Brief biography
by Sofia Magoulioti @ Ερευνητικός Οργανισμός Ελλήνων was a Greek modernist painter who specialized in portraits,

still-life A still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or man-made (drinking glasses, boo ...

s and landscapes.

Biography

He studied painting at the

Athens School of Fine Arts The Athens School of Fine Arts (ASFA; el, Ανωτάτη Σχολή Καλών Τεχνών, ΑΣΚΤ, literally: Highest School of Fine Arts), is Greece's premier Art school whose main objective is to develop the artistic talents of its students ...

from 1902 to 1906, where he was taught by his father,

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 ...

, and also by

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 ...

. After that, he transferred to the

Academy of Fine Arts, Munich The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (german: Akademie der Bildenden Künste München, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, ...

, and studied with

Ludwig von Löfftz Ludwig von Löfftz (21 June 1845 – 3 December 1910) was a German genre and landscape painter. Biography He was born at Darmstadt. He was a pupil of August von Kreling and Karl Raupp at Nuremberg, then of Wilhelm von Diez at the Academy o ...

, among others, until 1912.Biographical notes
@ the National Gallery. While there, he also came under the influence of

Der Blaue Reiter ''Der Blaue Reiter'' (The Blue Rider) is a designation by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc for their exhibition and publication activities, in which both artists acted as sole editors in the almanac of the same name, first published in mid-May ...

, a group of

Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

painters, and created illustrations for the novel ''A Tale with No Name'' by

Penelope Delta Penelope Delta (; 1874, Alexandria, Khedivate of Egypt – 2 May 1941, Athens, Greece) was a Greek author. She is widely celebrated for her contributions to the field of children's literature. Her historical novels have been widely read and hav ...

. He left Munich to enlist in the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

, serving as an officer and making sketches of Turkish fortifications. When he returned home, with several decorations, he began to participate in the exhibitions of the "Association of Greek Artists", often exhibiting together with the sculptor

Gregorios Zevgolis Gregorios Zevgolis ( el, Γρηγόριος Ζευγώλης; Athens, 1886 – Athens, 20 February 1950) was Greek people, Greek sculptor and painter, originating from Naxos. Biography He studied from 1903 to 1908 at the School of Fine Arts, ...

. Later, they opened a joint studio in the old workshop of

Lazaros Sochos Lazaros Sochos ( el, Λάζαρος Σώχος; 1862–1911) was a Greek sculptor. He was born in Tinos and educated in Athens under Leonidas Drosis. He later studied also in Paris. He is best known for the statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis in ...

. In 1917, he joined with

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 ...

and others to establish "Ομάδα Τέχνη" (The Art Group), with the aim of countering German

Academicism Academic art, or academicism or academism, is a style of painting and sculpture produced under the influence of European academies of art. Specifically, academic art is the art and artists influenced by the standards of the French Académie ...

in Greek art. His group won the support of Eleftherios Venizelos and the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. In 1923, he and Parthenis were candidates to take over the management of the School of Fine Arts. Lytras won the position, despite opposition based on the fact that his father was a major representative 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 ...

. His primary contribution involved changing the structure and role of the workshops; turning them into independent units. He held this position until his death from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

in 1927. A major retrospective of his work was given at the

Zappeion The Zappeion ( el, Ζάππειον Μέγαρο, Záppeion Mégaro, ) is a large, palatial building next to the National Gardens of Athens in the heart of Athens, Greece. It is generally used for meetings and ceremonies, both official and privat ...

in 1929.

Selected paintings

File:Lytras Nikolaos Portrait of Miss Hors.jpg, Portrait of his wife,
Maria Horsch File:Lytras Nikolaos Peeling Quinces.jpg, Peeling

Quince The quince (; ''Cydonia oblonga'') is the sole member of the genus ''Cydonia'' in the Malinae subtribe (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits) of the Rosaceae family (biology), family. It is a deciduous tree that bears hard ...

s File:Lytras Nikolaos Faros.jpg, Lighthouse File:Lytras Nikolaos 001.jpeg,

The Straw Hat ''The Straw Hat'' (russian: Соломенная шляпка, translit. ''Solomennaya shlyapka'') is a 1974 Soviet musical comedy television film directed by Leonid Kvinikhidze based on a play by Eugène Marin Labiche and Marc-Michel. Th ...

File:Nikolaos Lytras - Marika Apostolou.jpg, Marika Apostolou (1906) Municipal Art Gallery of Ioannina

References

External links

Arcadja Auctions: More works by Lytras

Biography and critical appreciation
by Aphrodite Kouria @ Κοινο Τοπία {{DEFAULTSORT:Lytras, Nikolaos 1883 births 1927 deaths Artists from Athens Expressionist painters 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Greek military personnel of the Balkan Wars Hellenic Army officers 20th-century Greek painters 19th-century Greek painters Academic staff of the Athens School of Fine Arts Tuberculosis deaths in Greece

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links