APOSTOLOS CHANTZARAS
Apostolos Chantzaras develops his own visual world of bold lines, forms and saturated colors, drawing influences from Greek folk shadow theater, ancient Greek sculptures and Byzantine iconography. A rich legacy of symbols related to Greece, the sun, the islands, the sea and its fish, the cross, the bathers, all come together in a unique, perceptible artistic amalgam empowered by strong colors and intense movement. Yet the outcome is not verbose. Chantzaras succeeds in transforming it and making it something of his own.
He was born in Agrinio-Greece in 1977. From early childhood, he studied and worked in the atelier of Byzantine Painting beside his father, Eleftherios Chantzaras.
He studied painting in the Athens School of Fine Arts under Professor Chronis Botsoglou. He also studied fresco and photography in the Athens School of Fine Arts. He was nominated for the IKY scholarship in 2000-2003. In 2004-2005 he studied in Université Paris 8 in Paris. In 2008 he painted for the Greek Post (ELTA) the special stamp series “Greek Traditional Products”. In 2011 he designed the cover for the novel “Glass Industry” by Menis Koumantareas, which was published by Vima newspaper, and the cover for the novel “Imaginary Adventure” by Alexandros Kotzias which was published by Kedros publishing company. In 2013 he designed the cover for the novel: “Olga or nothing” by Lito Pitiris, which was published by Kedros publishing company.
He has participated in several personal and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad. He lives and works in Athens. His paintings are part of private collections.