Adamantios Diamantis, When the People of Cyprus First-Heard the Bad News (detail), 1975
After my last visit to Leventis Gallery in Nicosia, Cyprus I was very inspired by the way Diamantis’ great paintings run around the room, literally covering up whole walls. It is something that I had in mind when I bought a ten-meter canvas earlier this year but due to the lack of workspace and limited time I had to compromise and ended up cutting my canvas smaller. My intention still remains though to make even larger pieces that will cover huge surfaces. I believe the size of the painting is adding to the monumentality that I want to achieve. Hopefully, that will be accomplished in my final year.
Contrary to the large paintings, there were also small works hung casually on the walls resembling a studio space. That was another way of presenting work that caught my attention at the same gallery. Photographs, drawings, sketches and handwritten notes were beautifully displayed without frames or mountings. That gave the viewer the feeling that could get closer to the artists most intimate pieces. When I was arranging my space I tried to recreate the feeling my workspace had and leave some sketchbooks and drawings casually around. I believe it added the intimacy I wanted.
When I am setting my final pieces at the end of the year, I want to have my large painting as a centerpiece in the middle of my space and surround it with the rest of my sketches and research. As the element of time is quite evident in what I do, I try to show continuity by rolling a piece of the large canvas so that it seems that it is somehow “unfinished” or that future will provide the images for continuing it.
End of Year Exhibition :
Photographs of Adamantios Diamanti’s sketches exhibited at Leventis Gallery in Nicosia
Michalis Theodosiou 