National Gallery

What I can see

The two main building volumes of the gallery are a low two-storey wing and an elongated multi-storey building which are connected by a bridge. In the past, the facades were made of exposed concrete and the surfaces had marble cladding. Today, only the low volume (periodical exhibition space – Soutzos Museum) has visible concrete, while the rest of the building is primarily covered with glass. In addition to the exhibition spaces, there are maintenance workshops, a library, an amphitheatre (350 seats), a restaurant-cafe, a shop, offices, warehouses, and a digital information lounge. The collection offers a very interesting panorama of the evolution of Greek art from the post-Byzantine era (mainly Ionian and Cretan art) to the present day. The main feature of the artists is their emphatic Greekness, which kept them partially away from the international artistic trends, which they rejected in favour of developing a typically Greek cultural heritage. Among the 20,000 works of painting, engraving, sculpture, drawing and construction we meet artists such as El Greco, Picasso, Jacob Jordaens, Giambattista Tiepolo, Francisco Goya, Rembrandt, Eugene Delacroix, Georgios Iakovidis, Nikiforos Lytras, Nikolaos Gyzis, Giannis Tsarouhis, Christos Kapralos, Giannis Moralis, Theofilos, George Zongolopoulos and many more.

What I can't see

The goals of the gallery are the promotion, enrichment, maintenance, storage, and study of the works, along with the artistic cultivation of the public and the creation of new stimuli. For this reason, it has branches in other cities in Greece. The gallery collections were initially created by collectors’ donations, by works offered by the artists themselves and, later, by important purchases. By the beginning of the 20th century, a strong wave of enthusiasm for art appreciation had engulfed Greece. During World War II, the museum’s artistic treasures were hidden in the basement of the National Archaeological Museum. After the war, they were transferred to the nearby Casa D’Italia, and then to an artillery barracks until the building was completed in 1976. During this time, periodic exhibitions were held at the Zappeion. Initially, the building was supposed to be built on another site and with a different design. When the site moved to the current location, the design was adjusted accordingly. The junta’s culture minister called it “horribly modern” and wanted to add two Ionian columns and a frieze. Upon completion of the project, the gallery had an area of ​​9,720 sq.m. and with the latest expansion, it grew to 20,760 sq.m in size.

Info

• Address: 50 V. Konstantinou St.
• Postal Code : 11601
• Phone: +30 210 7235937-8
• E-mail: [email protected]
• Website: http://www.nationalgallery.gr/site/content.php

Bibliography