86. 86AR YIANNIS TSAROUCHIS (1910-1989) Erotokritos et Polydoros signé en grec et daté « 83 » (sur chaque panneau en bas à droite) acrylique sur bois 198 x 158 cm. (dimension de largeur variable) (77.95 x 62.20 in.) Acrylic on wood Provenance Vassilis Fotopoulos collection, Athens. Private collection, Athens. Exhibitions Athens, Benaki Museum, Yannis Tsarouchis 1910-1989, December 18, 2009 - March 14, 2010, nos. 680-681 (illustrated in the exhibition catalogue, p. 361). Literature V. Fotopoulos, ed., Pandrosou 50, Martinos Antique and Fine Art Gallery, Athens 1995, p. 223 (illustrated). Member's Greek Edition, no. 8, 1996, p. 41 (illustrated). Distantly echoing the famous pair of Riace warriors1, Tsarouchis's monumental nudes revive the archetypal universe of classical sculpture, which sought the essence of things, stripping away details and uncovering the purest ideal of the human body. While the artists of the East tried to find truth by distancing themselves from the physical world and delving into the mystical, the Greeks studied the real and the natural in their search for truth and wisdom. And the laboratory in which they worked out their naturalistic art was the standing male nude, which they observed in close and loving detail.2 Here, inspired by the heroism, nobility and romance of bygone eras, Tsarouchis draws inspiration from the vast storehouse of Greek literary tradition. Erotokritos and his faithful friend Polydoros are protagonists in Erotokritos, a romantic epic unanimously acknowledged as the masterpiece of Cretan poetry and a milestone in the history of Greek literature. Written by Vintsentzos Kornaros around 1640, Erotokritos has struck deep roots in the Greek soul. Setting great store by true love, courage and patriotism, the poem enjoyed immense popularity and its hero became a symbol of suffering Hellenism, exalted side by side with Digenis Akritas and Alexander the Great. The story of this heroic verse romance runs as follows: Erotokritos falls in love with the King's daughter Aretousa, whom he serenades night after night. Aretousa, enchanted by his beautiful songs falls in love too. After various secret meetings between the two lovers, Erotokritos asks the king for her hand in marriage. The king, infuriated by this request, exiles the young lover and casts Aretousa into a dark dungeon. Polydoros provides moral support and helps the hero escape an attempted ambush by the king's soldiers. Later, when the city is about to fall to invaders, Erotokritos arrives in time to save the day. As a reward he asks for the hand of Aretousa, which is gratefully granted, and the two lovers reign happily ever after over the kingdom of Athens. Handled with energetic brushstrokes, highlighted by solid outlines, and captured in bold, abbreviated forms of dazzling white that alludes to ancient statuary, the two youths stand on a chequered tile floor bordered with the Greek key (meander) pattern, an ancient, continuous interlocking linear motif symbolising unity and infinity. Their heroic stature is accentuated by being set in shallow space against a flat backdrop of glowing colour that echoes the magnificent mosaics in Byzantine churches. In his left hand, Erotokritos holds a golden wreath illustrating a scene inspired by the verses 2420-2430 of the poem's Canto B, where the hero is being crowned with a golden wreath by Aretousa after defeating Prince Kypridimos in a jousting contest. These details endow the scene with an air of folk gallantry and honesty, poignantly capturing the Greek spirit and the Greek ethos of the Cretan Renaissance. Moreover, by ingeniously placing his ancient-statue-like youths against a Byzantine-like background, Tsarouchis underlined the continuity of the Hellenic spirit through the ages. 1 : Fifth c. BC bronze life-size male nude statues discovered off the coast of Riace in Calabria, Italy in 1972. 2 : See N. Cage, "Introduction" in The Greek Miracle, Classical Sculpture from the Dawn of Democracy, exhibition catalogue, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1993, pp. 17-20; G. Richter, Kouroi, London and New York, 1970, p. 4; M. Walters, The Nude Male, a New Perspective, Paddington Press, New York and London, 1978, p. 35.