Stelios Faitakis: Hell on Earth

The distinctive and technically outstanding visual language of the paintings of young Greek artist Stelios Faitakis skillfully combines the depiction of modern subjects with the influence of Byzantine, Russian, and Eastern iconic painting. The trademarks of his work are the intensive use of the color gold and images of halos, which were prevalent in medieval painting styles. Faitakis´s perspectives are unsettling, his content provocative. Referencing numerous styles, his images juxtapose Medusa-headed giraffes with skateboarders riding waves of destruction or religious martyrs and bizarre gangsters with suffering lovers. Violence and death often lay siege to his landscapes. Stelios Faitakis, who currently lives in Athens and has been painting since he was a child, builds worlds out of his images just as masterfully as he breaks them down again. The richness of detail in his work can be seen in the context of Pieter Bruegel and Mexican mural art. His powerful figurative technique takes installation to a new level that shows how criticism of current social conditions can be combined with timeless spiritual intensity in innovative ways. Faitakis has exhibited his work in numerous successful shows around the world. Most notably, his large scale mural paintings are receiving international accolades at the 2011 Venice Biennale, where they are gracing the façade of the Danish pavilion. Hell on Earth is Stelios Faitakis´s first comprehensive monograph. Texts by curators Katerina Gregos and Nadja Argyropoulou contextualize his apocalyptical work.