Athina 9.84 - Greece
“Catch Me”: The Unstoppable, Explosive Art of Nicholas Kontaxis at the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation
March 18 – May 18, 2025 | Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation
By Vasia Mpaketea
The works of acclaimed neurodivergent artist Nicholas Kontaxis, a Greek-American living and creating in the United States, are being exhibited in Greece for the first time at the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation Museum.
His large-scale abstract paintings have led to sold-out exhibitions from Los Angeles to London, and are featured in the private collections of Adele, Roger Federer, and Adidas.
In 2023, he was included on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list in the Art & Style category, recognizing him as one of the most influential young figures in the arts.
Born neurodivergent and diagnosed with a brain tumor that has caused over 75,000 epileptic seizures since he was just 14 months old, Nicholas Kontaxis uses very limited verbal communication. Yet, he has discovered a powerful way to connect with others through painting.
The exhibition is titled “Catch Me” — one of the few spoken phrases Nicholas has consistently used over the years, originally as a warning to his family before an oncoming seizure. However, according to Arthur Lewis, the curator of the exhibition, the phrase also captures the spirit and momentum behind Nicholas’s artistic practice.
The works on display are vibrant, structured, and explosive compositions, shaped by his singular existence and the challenges he has faced. At the center of the exhibition is a remarkable piece: a circular safety net, the kind used by New York City firefighters during rescue operations.
The net was discovered in New York by his mother, Krisann, who recalls, “I felt like that’s what we’ve been doing all our lives with Nicholas — catching him.” She had it shipped to Nicholas’s studio in Los Angeles, where during the pandemic lockdown it was transformed by him into a pulsing work of art, painted in his signature bold, explosive palette.
What once symbolized rescue now becomes a canvas of resilience, a centerpiece of the exhibition and a metaphor for protection, transformation, and creative survival.
“The exhibition Catch Me highlights once again that art is a universal language,” noted Fleurette Karadonti, Chair of the Board of the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation,
“fulfilling one of the Foundation’s key missions — to create a museum of inclusion, love, and harmony.”
The Catch Me exhibition is accompanied by a range of accessible activities and educational programs, organized in collaboration with the team at Nevronas and Leonteios School of Nea Smyrni. These initiatives enhance the overall visitor experience and emphasize the vital role of inclusion and empathy through art.
Visitors will also have the opportunity to explore a faithful reconstruction of Nicholas’s original studio, and to participate in hands-on workshops using materials and techniques inspired by his unique creative process — including palette knives, coffee, and spices — offering a truly immersive and sensory experience of his art.