iefimerida - Greece
Nikolas Kontaxis: The Greek Painter Featured in Forbes — Born with a Tumor, a Truly Moving Story
Forbes has just released its annual “30 Under 30” list, featuring entrepreneurs and artists who have excelled in their fields. Among them is a Greek name: 26-year-old Nikolas Kontaxis. Born with a brain tumor, Kontaxis has overcome extraordinary challenges to become a rising star in the art world. His powerful, large-scale abstract works have drawn critical acclaim and international attention — and now, a place on one of the most prestigious lists in global media.
By Newsroom iefimerida.gr
According to Forbes, topping the list is Hailey Bieber, the model and entrepreneur who this year launched her beauty product line under the name “Rhode”. As Forbes notes, “Hailey Bieber is here to stay.”
A Greek artist on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list
In the “Art & Style” category, a Greek name also stands out: Nikolas Kontaxis, born and raised in the United States, whose father, Efthymis, a doctor by profession, is from Greece.
Forbes writes about Nikolas Kontaxis: “Born with neurological disorders and a brain tumor that has resulted in thousands of seizures, Kontaxis largely communicates through painting. His large-scale abstract works have led to sold-out exhibitions from Los Angeles to London and are part of the collections of Adele, Roger Federer, and Adidas.”
The incredible story of artist Nikolas Kontaxis
Nikolas Kontaxis’ paintings might remind you of a modern-day version of Jackson Pollock. However, a key difference is that the 26-year-old artist is self-taught. He is also neurodivergent. But what does that mean, and what is his story?
Kontaxis experienced his first seizure at 14 months old. The following four years were a race against time, filled with tests, until he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. To date, he has had over 100,000 epileptic seizures, has been diagnosed as autistic, and faces challenges with speech and motor functions. Using very few words, painting has become his way of communicating.
How his love for painting was born
Things could have been very different, but his parents, Krisann, his caregiver, and Efthimis, his father, decided early on in his childhood not to give him excessive medication. Instead, they were determined to keep him active.
“We always tried to keep Nick alert after his seizures,” his mother told inews. “We asked him to clap, to move his hands,” she added. Of course, they tried various activities with varying degrees of success, but what caught his interest was painting. Since the age of 15, Nikolas has been painting constantly. The only training he received was art classes at the local high school.
He paints in a garage that has been converted into a studio
The Kontaxis family (Nikolas has two siblings) transformed the garage in their home in Rancho Mirage, California, into a studio. Within just a few years, his works became famous and are now exhibited in galleries, with commissions pouring in rapidly.
Using acrylic paints and large spatulas, Kontaxis paints either standing or sitting on the floor, working on large canvases. His works are bold, both in scale and in the use of color, and overflow with energy. “Nick can’t create realistic landscapes or figures,” says his mother. “He is an expressionist.” And this is not just the proud assessment of a mother about her son’s work. Stef Sebbag, from the De Re Gallery in Los Angeles, where Kontaxis’ paintings have been exhibited, says that “his work is comparable to artists like Jasper Johns and Sam Francis.”
Unprecedented use of color
The London art dealer Liam West, from West Contemporary, considers Kontaxis a talent to keep an eye on. As he says, “His use of color is unprecedented. There is something both harmonious and disruptive in his compositions, meaning you see something new every time you look at them.”
Kontaxis has sold hundreds of his paintings, and one of his admirers is Roger Federer, who first met him while playing at the Indian Wells tennis tournament near the Kontaxis family home. Federer and his wife Mirka, who discovered Kontaxis’s work, have purchased at least six of his paintings.
How does he title his works?
The titles of his works are perhaps funny and simple. “Buy A Cake,” “Blue Giraffe,” “I Am Very Busy,” “Dad Is Making Dinner For You,” “Sandwich, Please.” But how does he give titles to his works?
His mother says, “Nicholas speaks very little, usually in the form of short phrases and some words. So, when he is working on a piece, we write down whatever he says during its creation and stick it with a post-it on the back of the artwork. Sometimes, you just know that it’s the name he wants for the piece. Some other times, he may have many options, and we ask him to choose one of them. It’s a unique process for naming a painting that truly matches Nicholas’s uniqueness as a person.”
As for the prices of his artworks, his paintings sell for between $1,000 and $20,000, depending on the size.