ART ISLAND GUIDES:Tinos-Venardados, The Past And The Present In Art
Tinos Island is internationally recognized as the island of arts and marble. The plethora of local stone prompted generations of residents to engage systematically in marble craftsmanship and, subsequently, in other forms of visual artistic expression. While neighboring Pyrgos is considered the preeminent artists’ village, Venardados demonstrates a unique and striking singularity: nearly every house in this settlement has given birth to at least one artist.
By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: Dimitris Lempesis Archive
Almost hidden at a bend in the road before Pyrgos, in the rugged and authentic region of Exo Meria, Venardados constitutes a distinct cultural phenomenon. Despite its small size and the population fluctuations of recent years—with the 2011 Census recording a mere 5 permanent and 7 actual residents, while the 2021 Census showed an encouraging upward trend with 11 permanent and actual residents—the settlement’s artistic flame remains vibrant. As part of its summer events for 2026, the Venardados Cultural Association “Agios Ioannis Theologos” presented the multidimensional exhibition “Venardados: Yesterday and Today in Art”. The concept was conceived by the association’s president and visual artist, Konstantina Sylikou, who sought to highlight her birthplace’s rich artistic output. The exhibition is dedicated to the Preparatory and Vocational School of Fine Arts of Panormos Tinos, as well as to all the marble carvers, sculptors, and visual artists who shaped the island’s cultural identity. Curated by art historian Venia Pastaka, who notes that Venardados becomes the focal point of a major visual narrative, the exhibition aims to highlight the unique artistic heritage of a small location that, despite its size, has produced and continues to host an impressive number of creators. In this way, the village operates as a living sanctuary of memory, tradition, and artistic continuity. Its relationship with marble and art is deeply rooted in Tinos’s history and passed quietly from generation to generation, bringing into dialogue works of past and contemporary artists while illuminating the evolution from folk marble carving to modern visual art applications.
The exhibition unfolds around three main thematic axes: the creative continuity between historical local craft and modern visual expressions, an intergenerational dialogue where works of 19th- and 20th-century creators converse with those of living contemporary artists, and the promotion of the cultural heritage and collective memory of Exo Meria. The exhibits created an informal dialogue between tradition and the present, utilizing diverse materials such as marble, stone, paint, thread, fabric, and paper. Through the diversity of these mediums, the creators focus on the symbolic dimension of social memory while highlighting modern social and environmental issues.
*Tinian Marble Craftsmanship is inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The island’s relationship with marble is centuries old; according to legend, Phidias himself taught the art to the locals, while Tinian craftsmen created great monuments as early as antiquity. A major flourish occurred after 1821, when the villages of Exo Meria emerged as the most important center of marble carving in modern Greece. Today, the art remains alive thanks to the generational transmission of know-how and the operation of the Preparatory School of Fine Arts of Panormos.
The following artists participated (chronological order): Giannoulis Koulouris, Manolis Voulgaris, Ioannis Voulgaris, Petros Perakis, Nikos Gaitis, Lazaros Valakas, Giorgos Kontonikolaou, Filippas Skaris, Antonis Valakas, Giannis Palamarism Manthos Gaitis, Michalis Kontonikolaou, Dimitris Skaris, Konstantina Sylikou, Evangelia Athanasiou, Pinelopi Gaiti, Michalis Alvertis, Kosmas Skaris, Antonis Pittas, Giorgos Palamaris, Giorgos Palamaris, Andriana Voulgari, Stelios Kontonikolaou
Photo: Venardados – The Past And The Present In Art, Exhibition View, Venardados, 2026, Photo: © & Courtesy Dimitris Lempesis
Info: Curator: Venia Pastaka, Venardados village, Tinos Island, Greece, Duration: 21/7-10/8/2026
