Konstantinos Volanakis

Konstantinos Volanakis (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Βολανάκης; c. 1837 - 29 June 1907) was a Greek painter. He is known as one of the greatest Greek seascape painters. Another notable seascape painter was Ioannis Altamouras.

Biography

Volanakis was born at Heraklion on Crete, to parents who came from a small village near Rethymno. Later, they moved again for business reasons, and he completed his basic education on Syros in 1856. Afterward, urged on by his brothers, he went to Trieste and became a book-keeping clerk for a family of Greek merchants who were related to his family by marriage. He took full advantage of this, producing numerous canvases and sketches. In 1883, despite warnings from Gyzis that it would ruin his career, he returned to Greece and settled in Piraeus, where his family had a pottery factory, citing pressure from his wife, whose health was suffering from the cold winters in Germany. In 1889, he was awarded the Silver Cross of the Order of the Redeemer.

Gallery