Medici II: Santorini Artist & Painting

There are few places we consider as inspirational as Santorini, which you may have gathered from previous posts. In our ongoing Medici-quest for an original piece of artwork from each country we visit, selecting an artist who captures the spirit and essence of this island was a formidable task. There are a plethora of contributing elements that sum to our collective feelings about Santorini, and specifically, Oia. The dazzling blue caldera, the ancient architecture carved from lava, the quintessential cuisine, the winding pathways and steep staircases, the rugged multicolor cliffs, the dogs and cats… the list is long. However, if I had to choose the most important element, it would have to be the light. The blues of the water, sky and church domes against the white plaster of the cave houses and buildings serve as a faceted pallet in which the sun plies its magical spell from the first light of dawn until the last twinkle of dusk. Thus, our criteria for an artist was someone who had a love, understanding and mastery of Santorini’s light.

Unlike Florence, painters are not as prevalent as one might think. Santorini’s art scene is dominated by jewelry designers for the most part. We checked out several galleries and sidewalk artists before landing on, in retrospect, the only choice. Christoforos Asimis has been painting for over 50 years, almost exclusively on Santorini. He is to Santorini as Chihuly is to Seattle, specializing in landscapes and capturing the light of Santorini. With his wife, son and daughter, they have created the Asimis Kolaitou Foundation, a magnificent gallery space that features the sculpture and paintings of the family’s extremely talented artists.

We met Mr. Asimis twice and enjoyed learning about how he goes about approaching his paintings, how he thinks about the subject matter and some insight into his mastery of light. We also visited Santorini’s largest Greek Orthodox cathedral, where Mr. Asimis painted all of the frescos, having been trained at a young age in religious art.

The painting we chose best captures our feeling of light. Wescott described the painting best: “it’s like when you first wake up and your eyes are still sleepy, and you step into the dazzling morning light, making everything a little fuzzy and glowing.”