ART ISLANDS:Hydra- Sky/Sea/Sun: It’s like a Song

Kyriaki Gaglia, Diamond Beach, 2026, Acrylics on canvas sheet, 60x40 cm

Capturing the essence of summer, a new exhibition featuring contemporary works inspired by the sun, sea, and sky of the Greek and Mediterranean landscape is set to open on Hydra for one week. The event is curated by Efi Michalarou (Art Critic, Curator, and Treasurer of AICA Hellas) and organized by the dreamideamachine NPO. It is presented at the Melina Mercouri Art and Concert Hall, under the auspices of the Municipality of Hydra.

By Valia S. Katsimpa
Photo: dreamideamachine Archive

Fenia Chatzimichail, Vertical Routes, 2025, Digital print on 200 gsm glossy paper, 25x35 cm
Fenia Chatzimichail, Vertical Routes, 2025, Digital print on 200 gsm glossy paper, 25×35 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

This collective exhibition, titled “Sky/Sea/Sun: It’s like a Song!”, approaches the Greek and Mediterranean landscape not merely as a representation, but as a lived experience, brought to life through the diverse works of a large group of contemporary artists. In an era where nature is deeply challenged and the reality of climate change grows ever more pressing, anchoring ourselves to the foundational elements of worldly beauty feels like a wish, a prayer, a hymn. Like a melody drifting and vibrating beneath the starry summer sky—a sky that, through the eyes of the poet, has always guided human existence through things great and small, sparking philosophical reflections and giving breath to the world’s poetry. It is a tribute to the Aegean and Ionian seas, which have long embraced travellers, cooling their thoughts and dreams while shaping the human geography and cultural tapestry of the Mediterranean. And finally, it is about a sun and a light like no other, which pierce through time to illuminate traditions and cultures, manners and customs, awakening collective memory and lived experience. Here, this Mediterranean landscape is explored through various media, such as painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, installation, and video. Inspired by the sky, the sea, and the sun, the works translate these elements into contemporary visual languages, focusing on experience and the inner landscape.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, July 4, 2026, at 20:00, and will remain open daily to the public until Saturday, July 11, 2026.

Participating Artists: Natasa Agelaki, Akakia Apergi, Giota Balomenou, Eva Bratopoulou, Fenia Chatzimixail, Chrisoula Dimaresi, Danae Dimoutziki, Lila Didou, Marianna Dervou, Dimitris Lempesis, Kiriaky Gaglia, Morfoula Farandou, Annalina Fotopoulou, Eva Geraki, Maria Georgiadou, Aggeliki Germakopoulou, Leonidas Gkelos, Sofia Gounaropoulou, Athina Hatzi, Evangellos Kalogeropoulos, Yiannis Kaminis, Christianna Kampi, Dora Kapetan Lamprou, Vaggelis Karamanlis, Magda Kafetzopoulou, Alexandros Maganiotis, Stathis Mavridis, Markella Michalitsianou, Ioanna Michopoulou, Christina Minani, Katerina Mitri, Dina Politi, Eleni Pappa Tsantilis, Anna Papadopoulou, Panagiotis Rappas, Nelly Rizou, Christina-Sylvia Simantira, Iryna Sinkevich, Athena Stamatis, Konstantinos Stoupathis, Sonia Tsiplitari, Dimitra Tziomaka, Thodoris Tolis, Chara Theodorou, Hera Vitali, Grigoria Vryttia, Flora Zafeiraki, Maria Zygomala

Photo: Kyriaki Gaglia, Diamond Beach, 2026, Acrylics on canvas sheet, 60×40 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

Info: Curator: Efi Michalarou, Assistant Curators: Dimitris Lempesis and Annalina Fotopoulou | Melina Mercouri Art and Concert Hall, Hydra Port, Hydra, Greece, Duration: 4-11/7/2026, Days & Hours: Daily 11:00 – 14:00 & 18:00 – 21:00

Grigoria Vryttia, Dissecting Sweetness I, 2025, Embroidery on doily and calico fabric, 30x30 cm
Grigoria Vryttia, Dissecting Sweetness I, 2025, Embroidery on doily and calico fabric, 30×30 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Left: Aggeliki Germakopoulou, Hydnellum floriforme, 2017, Clay, 15x7x7 cm Right: Vangelis Karamanlis, The Shape of Water, 2026, Metal, 36.5x22x15.5 cm
Left: Aggeliki Germakopoulou, Hydnellum floriforme, 2017, Clay, 15x7x7 cm, © & Courtesy the artist
Right: Vangelis Karamanlis, The Shape of Water, 2026, Metal, 36.5x22x15.5 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Sofia Ginaropoulou (or Gounaropoulou), Horizon of Freedom, 2025, Digital photograph, 30x40 cm, Ed. 1/7
Sofia Ginaropoulou (or Gounaropoulou), Horizon of Freedom, 2025, Digital photograph, 30×40 cm, Ed. 1/7, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Lila Didou, Infinity spiral, 2026, Oils, liquid glass & gold leaf, 60x60 cm
Lila Didou, Infinity spiral, 2026, Oils, liquid glass & gold leaf, 60×60 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Magda Kafetzopoulou, 2019, Twelve Apostles, Watercolor on paper, 24.5x24.5 cm
Magda Kafetzopoulou, 2019, Twelve Apostles, Watercolor on paper, 24.5×24.5 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Dimitris Lempesis, Hydra Nature, 2026, Color photograph, 30x40 cm, Ed. 1/5
Dimitris Lempesis, Hydra Nature, 2026, Color photograph, 30×40 cm, Ed. 1/5, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Left: Anna Papadopoulou, A Sunday in the Country, 2021-22, Processed fabric on styrofoam and paint with varnish, 8x12x20 cm Right: Alexandros Maganiotis, Acromeria Acropolitana, 2026, Fine art print on paper, Edition of 25, 42x30 cm
Left: Anna Papadopoulou, A Sunday in the Country, 2021-22, Processed fabric on styrofoam and paint with varnish, 8x12x20 cm, © & Courtesy the artist
Right: Alexandros Maganiotis, Acromeria Acropolitana, 2026, Fine art print on paper, Edition of 25, 42×30 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Eleni Tsantili-Pappa, VOIE BLEUTEE 1, 2023, Oil, pigments, ink and metallic leaf on canvas, 30x30x4 cm
Eleni Tsantili-Pappa, VOIE BLEUTEE 1, 2023, Oil, pigments, ink and metallic leaf on canvas, 30x30x4 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Left: Maria Zygomala, Breathing Paper, 2026, Water-Paper & Air, 20x30 cm Right: Nelly Rizou, Colchicum, May 2025, Fabric & threads, 40x50 cm
Left: Maria Zygomala, Breathing Paper, 2026, Water-Paper & Air, 20×30 cm, © & Courtesy the artist
Right: Nelly Rizou, Colchicum, May 2025, Fabric & threads, 40×50 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Christina-Sylvia Simantira, nature V, 2025, Acrylic markers on Canson paper, 20x30 cm
Christina-Sylvia Simantira, nature V, 2025, Acrylic markers on Canson paper, 20×30 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Athina Stamati, Athina Mine 1 & 2 (diptych), 2025, Acrylics on canvas, 30x40 cm
Athina Stamati, Athina Mine 1 & 2 (diptych), 2025, Acrylics on canvas, 30×40 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Athina Stamati, Athina Mine 1 & 2 (diptych), 2025, Acrylics on canvas, 30x40 cm
Athina Stamati, Athina Mine 1 & 2 (diptych), 2025, Acrylics on canvas, 30×40 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Konstantinos Stoupathis, Blue Caves, 2026, Acrylics on canvas, 25x18 cm
Konstantinos Stoupathis, Blue Caves, 2026, Acrylics on canvas, 25×18 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Left: Dimitra Tziomaka, "Sunbathing", 2026, Graphite and synthetic gold leaves on cotton cloth, 30x40 cm Right: Annalina Fotopoulou, Once in a dream I, Watercolor, 29x21 cm
Left: Dimitra Tziomaka, “Sunbathing”, 2026, Graphite and synthetic gold leaves on cotton cloth, 30×40 cm, © & Courtesy the artist
Right: Annalina Fotopoulou, Once in a dream I, Watercolor, 29×21 cm, © & Courtesy the artist

 

 

Athina Chatzi, Summertime, 2024, Acrylics on wood, 18x23 cm
Athina Chatzi, Summertime, 2024, Acrylics on wood, 18×23 cm, © & Courtesy the artist