Elena Antonopoulou, Say Goodbye to Her, the Alexandria You Are Losing, 2018, collage, Artist’s photo.
Elena Antonopoulou is a young artist from Greece. She has studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts. Also, she has participated in several artistic contests, winning first place and recognition. In Spring 2021 she will have her first solo exhibition in Athens. Her work has changed forms over the years, but what has stayed the same is that Antonopoulou still addresses current affairs and personal matters.
Elena Antonopoulou’s father is a well-recognized contemporary artist in Greece, Aggelos Antonopoulos. He is one of the artists she admires the most and draws inspiration from. Aggelos Antonopoulos creates crafts and installations. Thus he shows the viewer his personal opinions on several current affairs in a dark and allusive way.
Other than him, Elena Antonopoulou finds inspiration in the work of Triantafyllos Patraskidis, in the way he distorts his figures. Also, Hans Bellmer, Louise Bourgeois, Joseph Cornell, and René Magritte are a few other artists that stimulate her. Basically, Expressionism and Surrealism are the two general movements that provoke her imagination. For example, in the artwork below, we can see the resemblance to Dora Maar, or at least the surrealistic influence.
Antonopoulou’s art has changed over the years. She began with painting which later turned to photography and photo collage in natural size. Nowadays, she makes crafts. She takes figures and puts them into wooden boxes with scenographic elements. That is, she creates a 3D world that serves her concept.
Usually she addresses several social issues such as sexism, racism, child abuse, and sexual assault. However, she expresses personal feelings too, such as grief or loss. Overall, the works are filtered and detached in a way. For instance, let’s look at her version of Little Red Riding Hood. The work is based on the original fairytale and denotes child sexual abuse.
From her personal experience, Antonopoulou states that Greece faces problems regarding its institutions, organization, and the openness of artistic creation. Certainly, Covid has inflamed the situation. However, she hopes that Greece will give more opportunities to young artists in the future.
When it comes to future projects, the artist has several on the go. She is working with the Athens School of Fine Arts for the Platforms project of 2021. Also she is preparing her solo exhibition for spring. Lastly, she is participating in a group exhibition about sexual assault.
*All the aforementioned exhibitions will take place if the Covid situation allows it.
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I'm Errika Gerakiti, an art writer and curator based in Athens. I write about modern and contemporary art, fashion, and cinema — with a particular interest in the overlooked, the uncomfortable, and the underrepresented. When I'm not writing, I'm curating exhibitions, reading, painting, sculpting, or reading. For longer reads, personal essays, and an occasional science-fiction or horror story, find me on Substack.
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