Nakis Panayotidis

The Greek Arte Povera artist Nakis Panayotidis was born in Athens in 1947. After studying architecture in Turin (1966) and fine arts in Rome (from 1967), he settled in Switzerland in 1973. Since then he lives and works between Bern and the Greek Cyclades island of Serifos.

In the tradition of Arte Povera, Panayotidis uses a wide variety of materials in his works, such as stone, straw, lead, iron, copper, lamps and so on. His art combines light and life and is never static. It is always about opposites in the moment of balance. He loves the present in which he lives, although the mythology and art of antiquity are part of his life. Panayotidis is always a realist and always starts from what he sees in front of him alone. Only that counts. In his objects, photo installations, paintings and neon works he reflects the meaning, the value, the truth of what he sees. The goal of his art is to highlight and let shine in the momentary random image what is permanently present beyond the moment.