Our story begins with a lemon tree in the protected courtyard of an old house in Poros, which was converted into an art gallery in 2006. Its intoxicating scent, similar to that of the Lemon Forest on the island, also gave its name to the then new art gallery: Citron. Since then, this imaginary subtle aura has surrounded all the activities organized in the house by the sea, as well as in the Athena Annex, an elegant apartment in Kolonaki that opened its doors in 2018. This was also the goal of art historian Tatiana Spinaris. Pollali to create an artistic center as a welcoming “garden” that brings together artists, collectors, art lovers and curators. This summer, the relay of the exhibitions goes back to the island, where over the years there has been an excellent synergy with the Ephorate of Antiquities of Piraeus and the Islands, with double discoveries both at the Citronne Headquarters and at the Archaeological Museum of Poros. where, by 2023, Thinios Alekos Kirarinis has committed to creating works that echo ancient rifts.

Kirarinis (1976), from a family of marble sculptors, is one of the most interesting and gentle artists of this generation. He experienced marble as well as Byzantine art, and there is a strong religious element in his work. In the 15 works he presents under the title “On the Graves”, he lyrically addresses the relationship between the living and the dead, the need for eternal memory that sustains the sleeping present. The figures he draws work together with the images of the museum’s vases and tombstones. However, at the same time, they also refer to the Christian faith and iconography with guardian angels, images of good and evil. It is the repetition of old patterns, revived in a new way by the hand of a 21st century artist who loves tradition but also introduces his own narratives. However, reproduction is also the central theme of this year’s exhibition at the Citronne headquarters called “Repetitions”.

Eleven artists (Nikos Alexiou, Bepe Caturelli, Alekos Chiarinis, Christina Mitrentse, Mirto Xanthopoulou, Maria Oikonomopoulou, Nina Papakonstantinou, Nikos Podias, Efi Spirou, Thalia Kioti, Panos Charalambous) are involved in the project, each of whom explores this topic from their own point of view . . Each with its own personality, its own methodology, its own visual vocabulary, with a variety of means and materials. Often a common feature in the process and technique of the exhibition of artists is the appeal to manual labor.