Curatorial Note

Eleni Karnezi’s solo exhibition, “Of Senses and Hallucinations,” draws inspiration from the song of the same name by Manos Hadjidakis, serving as a multidimensional exploration of the fine line between reality and imagination. Through her painting, Karnezi invites us to experience the tension and interaction of senses and hallucinations as they emerge through color and gestures on the canvas. Her works transport the viewer to worlds where reality is distorted and transformed, while colors and forms become vessels of emotion and abstract meaning.

Karnezi’s exhibition offers a multidimensional experience where the materiality of color, movement, and silence coexist harmoniously, guiding the viewer through an internal exploration of personal emotions and thoughts. The exhibition features three distinct series of works, complemented by a range of both natural and conceptual landscapes created over the past two years.

The “Breath of City” series comprises works with intense colors following an abstract approach. Dense brushstrokes and dark shades create dynamic, sometimes fiery textures. These pieces evoke comparisons with Mark Rothko, though here, texture takes on a more dominant role than pure color fields. The surfaces appear almost relief-like, with thick layers of paint suggesting a hands-on approach to painting. The mood is dramatic and explosive, exuding intensity and passion. In this series, Karnezi uses color to explore tension and struggle through bold palettes and gestural applications of paint. These works stand as a powerful study in the materiality of painting, echoing the pressing existential concerns of abstract expressionism.

The “Aura of Happiness” series is characterized by shapes with biomorphic qualities. Flowing lines and vivid hues create movement and energy within the composition, recalling artists like Joan Miró with their imaginative, dreamlike quality. Forms seem to float against an abstract background, evoking a surreal, dreamlike world. The forms escape the weight of earthly reality and ascend, creating spiral patterns and floating shapes. The gesture here combines abstract shapes with a vibrant color palette, a technique reminiscent of Helen Frankenthaler, known for her innovative approaches in abstract expressionism, especially through her use of color. Karnezi creates a playful, spontaneous space, inviting the viewer to participate in a world of imagination.

Her landscape-inspired works, sometimes more abstract and sometimes less so, blend color fields with hints of natural forms, exuding tranquility and introspection. The artist proposes landscapes in constant transition, inviting us to lose ourselves in the abyss of colors and atmospheric perspectives. Here, color becomes a mysterious path to inner calm, offering a profound sense of reflection.

Eleni Karnezi’s exhibition is a journey between senses and hallucinations, where her painting becomes a tool for exploring psyche and imagination. With dynamic colors, abstract forms, and rich textures, she invites us to reconsider the world and our emotions. The exhibition offers an artistic experience filled with intensity, passion, and contemplation, leading the viewer on a deeply internal journey.

–Paris Kapralos, Art Curator
October 2024, Athens