Early 20th Century Konstantinos Maleas Credited Acropolis Painting

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A beautiful and significant painting attributed to the great greek artist konstantinos maleas,
in his undeniable post-impressionist style, he depicts … Read more A beautiful and significant painting attributed to the great greek artist konstantinos maleas,
in his undeniable post-impressionist style, he depicts one of his favourite subjects: the acropolis of athens set against a hilly landscape dominated by shades of green and earth tones, through a multi-layered composition set on a grassy slope dotted with large boulders and exposed rocks.
the use of dynamic and harmonious brushstrokes perfectly captures the presence of vegetation and natural paths immersed in an almost magical atmosphere.
at the top of the hill on the left stand the ruins of a classical temple, identifiable as the parthenon, with its iconic doric columns.
a chain of more distant hills, bathed in a warm light that fades towards the horizon, typical of monumental representations of the 19th and 20th centuries.
the acropolis, which in greek means ‘high city’, stands at a height of approximately 156 metres, and at its summit lie the principal monuments of classical greece:
the parthenon: a doric temple dedicated to the goddess athena.
the propylaea: the monumental entrance to the sacred precinct.
the erechtheion: a temple known for its asymmetry and caryatids. The temple of athena nike: situated on a rocky outcrop.
this type of view was a recurring theme for many european artists, including konstantinos maleas, leo von klenze and carl rottmann, who sought to capture the connection between the historic ruins and the surrounding natural landscape.

signature traces in the bottom right-hand corner

this artwork, never before on the market, comes from an important european private collection and is beautified by an impressive frame in silvered wood, in almost perfect condition.

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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 greece's most important modern artist.
maleas was born and grew up in constantinople, far away from the greek artistic centre in athens.
the young painter avoided therefore the influence of the munich school that dominated athenian art.
he studied at the phanar greek orthodox college and then left for paris in 1901 at an age of 23 years to study initially architecture.
in paris he eventually decided to study painting until 1908 with henri martin.
in 1913 he returned to greece, initially in thessaloniki and then based in athens.
in 1917 he became founding member of the avant-garde art group ομάδα τέχνη, which imported the international contemporary art movements of the time to greece. He travelled extensively in greece, western europe, palestine and egypt where he drew some of the subjects for his famous landscapes.
apart from painting, he was also involved in public discussion of the modernisation of the greek language.
he was a friend of glenos, delmouzos and triantafylidis.
he illustrated the first alphabet book in the new modern greek language demotiki (αλφαβητάρι με τον ήλιο), and wrote articles for newspapers such as nouma, elefthero vima, as well as writing for a number of art journals.
maleas was recognised for his artistic contribution by the greek government, which awarded him its 'highest acknowledgement of letters and
maleas work was influenced by the work of paul cézanne, paul gauguin, vincent van gogh, and by the art movements of symbolism, impressionism and fauvism.
his paintings are characterised by very light and bright colours, the large brushes that revolutionalised the stagnant athenian art of the time.
most art critics condemned his work, and it was only fotos politis that recognised the value of maleas's work, also urging young artists to learn from his paintings.
maleas remains one of the most popular greek modern artists, and his works are exhibited at the national gallery of athens and elsewhere.



some defects, as shown in the photo this piece is attributed to the mentioned designer/maker. It has no attribution mark and no
official proof of authenticity,
however it is well documented in design history. I take full responsibility for any authenticity



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