A simple path to beauty, truth and freedom…
“Early on, I learned that the most precious elements in life are truth and beauty. And that simplicity is the path that can lead us to both … That is how I strive to create … and through that process of creation, I am given the chance to feel free. I am given the opportunity to capture that sense of freedom for viewers to enjoy…”
Marios Stilianakis, Sept. 2010
Stilianakis is a writer who paints. He is also a painter who writes. These statements are both simple and true. It is in a similarly simple and true manner that beauty is materialized in Stilianakis’s creations.
More often than not, Stilianakis uses birds as the vehicle of expressing the different themes in his art. Themes he transforms into simplistic but rich compositions, truthful in subject matter and beautiful in the way they take form on his canvases: The celebration of a wedding; The ease and speed with which our years of youth seem to pass us by; The striking and simple beauty of the blue in the Mediterranean sky; Making the choice to see beauty instead of ugliness when we look around us; Choosing to be calm and forgiving instead of angry and vindictive; The bravery and risk of attempting the impossible. These are some of the most recent themes captured by Stilianakis on his canvas creations.
His paintings, whatever their central theme, consistently evoke a chilling, unusual and always unique point of view on life. Life and its beauty, its truth, its persistence… always presenting us with a choice between good and evil. “Life does that,” Stilianakis says, “in every situation, it always puts us center-stage, forcing us to make the choice between good and evil!” Through his art, Stilianakis chooses to look at life and say, “Yes, we were given the privilege to live – live here, on this planet! Yes, life is not easy! Yes, life will make us laugh AND cry! Yes, the choices we make will define who we become! But, by God, what a journey and what elation to be able to see and feel all that comes with it. With life, here and now!”
Stilianakis has studied art and has been drawing since he was a child. At university, he studied Art History and later on, served as an art consultant to many individual and corporate art buyers. Among other private collectors around the world, Stilianakis’s works are included in collections in the homes of well known film directors and producers in Bel Air, Beverly Hills and Hollywood as well as purchased for and displayed in prestigious corporate environments in New York City and Los Angeles. In the US, his art has also been used in posters and CD covers.
Stilianakis is a Greek-American of Cypriot descent. He moved to the United States from Cyprus when he was nineteen years-old. He has studied at Clark University, City University of London, Harvard University and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He has lived in Massachusetts, Kansas, California, London and New York. For the past thirteen years, he has been splitting his time between Los Angeles and New York City. In addition to painting, Stilianakis is the author of two books of fiction (one in Greek and the other in English, both published in Europe), he has written numerous short stories and poems in English (all included in a variety of literary and commercial publications around the world), he is the scriptwriter and director of three dramatic films (written in English and produced and screened in the U.S.), the screenwriter of a comedic TV series (written in Greek and produced/aired by CYBC in Cyprus), and he is the playwright of two theatrical plays: a drama entitled WATER, directed by Stilianakis and produced in Hollywood, California (for a sold out run of six weeks), and a comedy, entitled THE DIAMOND DIARIES, the public reading of which is currently in production on Broadway in New York City. Stilianakis has also written lyrics for a number of songs in English, all of which have been produced in the U.S. The vocals for all songs have been performed by Rachael Owens, a talented, up-and-coming singer of eclectic musical abilities. The music for two of the songs was by Greek-born songwriter and performer, Stamatis Kraounakis.
In his artistic thinking, Stilianakis is an avid admirer of the art of Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Alecos Fassianos. Stilianakis is a close friend with Fassianos, who has been a mentor to Stilianakis and is an enthusiastic supporter of Stilianakis’s art. Stilianakis continues to aspire to injecting similar elements of simplistic truth and beauty in his paintings like Picasso, Van Gogh, and Fassianos have done in their works.
Stilianakis is currently working on an anthology of 50 poems that will be accompanied by related paintings and published as a limited edition, hand-made, book series of 1-100. The anthology is estimated to come out 2015-2016 and is also be available in electronic form for download.
Finally, Stilianakis has always been intrigued by the variety of thematic elements of “love”: romantic love, parental love, love for one another, love for one’s country, love for the environment, love for our planet and the universe, etc. Consequently, Stilianakis is currently working on his first collective work of 20-25 paintings (all acrylic on canvas in various sizes). This series of works will carry the common theme of “Love in everyday life!”
At present, works by Stilianakis are exclusively offered for sale at the GOLDEN GALLERY by Kapatays, a prestigious establishment based in Nicosia, Cyprus that represents many of the Modern Greek and Cypriot masters, including Alecos Fassianos.
For additional information including a list of works by Stilianakis is available by contacting:
Andreas Kapatays, + 357 99 643177 or + 357 22 665727
or by e-mail at andreas@kapatays-gallery.com