Georgios Iakovidis

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Georgios Iakovidis was a Greek painter of the late 19th - early 20th century.

Iakovidis was born in Chydera, Lesbos, on January 11, 1853 (though 1852 is also mentioned as a possibility). He was educated mostly in Smyrna, Asia Minor. In 1878, he received a scholarship to study in the Munich Academy of Art where he was taught by Karl von Piloty who had also taught Nikiforos Lytras and Nikolaos Gyzis.

Iakovidis stayed in Munich several years after his graduation from the Academy. He was considered a successful painter whose works were highly priced. Between 1890 and 1900, his paintings won awards in five international exhibits, including Berlin (1891) and Paris (1900). In 1900, the Greek government invited him to come to Athens and organise the National Gallery. Iakovidis accepted. Four years later (1904) he would become professor of the Athens School of Fine Arts, filling in the vacancy left by Lytras' death.

Iakovidis dominated Greek painting for many years. As a professor, he influenced an entire generation of Greek artists. Almost all his paintings have children (mostly boys) and infants as subjects. He died in Athens in 1932.

Works

  • "The Bad Grandson" (1884)
  • "The First Steps" (c. 1892)
  • "The Children's Concert" (1900)