Sotiris Sotiriou depicts everyday life through the reformation of images originating from the supraliminal and subliminal stimuli present in his mundane life.
He consciously selects images in time and space,no matter how essential or unimportant, real or virtual, original or common they are and he transfers them into his paintings, subconsciously mixing them with his memories and dreams in order to create the sense of the grotesque and the unknown.
Through the rendition of those new unfamiliar images, he awakes his own senses which have been obscured by routine and he emphasizes the concepts of daily life ideas.
His art moves between pop-art and neo-expressionism. He is interested in simplicity, the purity of colors and the pleasant feeling of form-and-color balance. Sotiriou likes comparisons: He is concerned about what is empty and what is full. A balance between the two is important to him.
Sotiris Sotiriou was born in Nicosia, Cyprus.
He studied Painting in the School of Fine Arts at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece under the supervision of Yiannis Fokas.
He has also attented Etching and Photography classes.
Most of his works regard the use of acrylic and oil on canvas, but recently he has developed an interest in computer media and video projections.
He has participated in numerous group exhibitions.The last one took place in the 2nd Beijing International Art Biennale at the China National Museum of Fine Arts and the Art Museum of the China Millennium Monument in Beijing,2005.
Sotiris Sotiriou has won five awards for his artistic work.
Exhibitions:
2005, 2nd Beijing International Art Biennale, Beijing, China
2002, Biennale of Young Artists,(award)Crete,
Greece
2000, Group exhibition, "Cypriot Artists", Nicosia, Cyprus
2000, Group exhibition, Skali Cultural Centre, Nicosia,
Cyprus
1995, Group exhibition, Famagusta Gate, Nicosia, Cyprus
1994, Group exhibition, Melina Merkouri Hall, Nicosia,
Cyrpus
1994, Group exhibition, "Earth-Venus Art Symposium",
Famagusta Gate, Nicosia, Cyprus
1992, Group exhibition, "Natural Environment", Opus 39,
Nicosia, Cyprus
1992, Group exhibition, Filoxenia Congress Hall, Nicosia,
Cyprus.
Press Coverage / Reviews:
(His) work is lively , bold, mostly large and very
adventurous. Major works and minor delights.
...this experimentation and enthusiasm is far better than
boring, even, filling-ins balancing the life out of the
canvas.
The paintings rightly show (his) international preferences -
Gorki, de Kooning, artists who teach at Thessaloniki and
even Bernard Buffet.
(The Cyprus Weekly, May 12-18, 2000)
