Aartist Rinos Stefani will thrill audiences with works based on his visit to St Neophytos Monastery as of Friday at the Chiaki Kamikawa Contemporary Art Gallery in Paphos.
St Neophytos meets Apsevdis will showcase some of his first paintings on the subject, which were produced in 2006 and also a new body of work revisiting the same theme from 2016. The 2006 series – mostly in black and white – use industrial paint with quick and spontaneous brush strokes and rough scratch marks. The images are simple, bold and expressive, while at the same time being humorous and ironic as he depicts religious figures in an unconventional manner.
The 2006 paintings and drawings were inspired by the frescoes of the 12th century painter Theodoros Apsevdis. One particular painting has fascinated Stefani since childhood and is among the frescos at the St Neophytos Monastery near Paphos. It portrays Archangels Michael and Gabriel with Saint Neophytos between them. In this scene the Archangels have very eminent facial expressions and are holding the saint very close to them. In contrast, the saint looks helpless with his hands crossed over his chest. As a child when he first visited the monastery and saw the painting, Stefani imagined the scene showed the two Archangels arresting Saint Neophytos. Years later he found out that the scene in fact showed the Archangels leading the Saint to Christ on the Day of Judgement. This misunderstanding of Apsevdis’ intention inspired Stefani to create a series of works on the subject of Saint Neophytos and Apsevdis.
Saint Neophytos and Apsevdis have been recurring subjects in Stefani’s work over the years. In 2016 he created a series of paintings on this subject with new elements and symbols. Stefani uses metaphorical motifs, such as saws, flames, and piles of stones to give the paintings a violent twist. He also uses box-headed figures to create mysterious feelings in the pieces and the viewers. Compared to the series from 2006, the works of the new series are sober and narrative, and they are also carefully executed with a limited range of colours.
Stefani’s paintings are strongly influenced by Byzantine art, both on a thematic and visual level with a brutal approach and naive stylistic elements. We may think that religious subject matter is challenging for artists but for Stefani’s playful mind it seems that the fresco painting of Saint Neophytos Monastery has been a source of new narratives and has given him an opportunity to liberate his imagination.
For the last 30 years Stefani has used a variety of media, including installations, paintings and drawings. He has introduced a hybrid form of action that includes installation and happening under the name Praxis to Cyprus.
St. Neophytos Meets Apsevdis
Solo exhibition by Rinos Stefani. Opens March 2 at 7.30pm until March 17. Chiaki Kamikawa Contemporary Art, 10 Solonos, Paphos. Monday-Friday: 10am-1pm and 4pm-6pm. Saturday: 10am-1.30pm. Tel: 99-311225
