Deriving from the common phrase ‘as happy as a sandboy’, meaning extremely happy or carefree, the title of the exhibition stands as an irony, framing the different works of Ivan Masteropoulos. Profound happiness hides moments of restrain, violence and distraction. The characters seem careless, enjoying themselves and are engaged in group games and bliss moments, except a crying boy giving away the suspicion of an uneasy situation.
The element of sand and soil is found in all of the works through different variations. The images are sealed and glazed through the burning of enamel colors. In the installations, buried objects are hidden under thin layers of clay, sand and color, adding to the unfolding narrative through the exhibition space.
Ivan Masteropoulos has a vibrant and sincere gaze upon his themes, pointing out a twisted reality that depicts men engulfed by their surroundings. He creates dense and refined surfaces through collaging of different sources – snaps, newspaper clips, history archives and personal photographs which are then manipulated to create an imaginary narrative in an indefinable place and time by the infusion of images of the past with notions of the future. The human figure is always the subject matter, often made with a single stroke that reminds us of ancient Greek drawings, floating through the picture plane made of a thick color layering.
EXHIBITION DURATION / Διάρκεια έκθεσης
3 -12 February/ Φεβρουαρίου 2023
Image credit: Maria Sideleva
is an Athens based artist. He is a graduate of the School of Theology in University of Athens (UOA) with the scholarship of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. From 2005-2009 he studied painting in Athens School of Fine Arts and in 2007-2008 he studied at Universidad de Sevilla, Facultad de Bellas Artes while being on an Erasmus scholarship. He has exhibited his works in solo exhibitions and has participated in many group exhibitions and art projects in Athens, Moscow and abroad. His works can be found in museums and private collections in Russia, Greece and other countries.
