George Lappas, Acrobat

A moment of impossible balance

The piece Acrobat by George Lappas depicts a red human form balancing upside down on top of a small red stool. This is a typical figure that we often see among the artist’s pieces.

Balancing in a precarious one-arm handstand, it appears to be caught in a moment of impossible balance, between fall and stasis. The composition creates a feeling of tension, danger and theatricality.

A symbolic colour for an archetypical form

The single red colour is a trademark of the artist, common in many of his pieces. With this choice, Lappas distances the human form from realistic representation, turning it into an almost symbolic, archetypical shape.

The acrobat was a recurring, almost obsessive theme for George Lappas throughout his creative journey. Along with related forms, such as the equilibrist, they were the archetypical figures that the artist linked to mental states he identified in himself.

For Lappas, the balancing position on a marginal point, such as a stool, a rope or a jump, served as a metaphor for the artistic act itself. It was a perpetual negotiation between control and loss of control, stability and fall.

A feeling of oscillation in the artistic language

In his work in general, Lappas created sculptural compositions with centrifugal forces and tensions.

It was his way of rendering a sense of oscillation, perilousness and acrobatics. These are all elements that exist in the Acrobat, making it one of the most typical examples of the sculptor’s artistic language.

His life in a nutshell

George Lappas (1950-2016) was born in Cairo. He has studied:

• Clinical Psychology at Reed College, Oregon, USA (1969-1973).
• Architecture at the Architectural Association School of Architecture, London (1975).
• Sculpture at the Athens School of Fine Arts, under Giannis Pappas and George Nikolaidis (1976-1981).
• Sculpture at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts of Paris (1984)

From 1992 until his untimely death in 2016, he was a professor of Sculpture at the Athens School of Fine Arts.

Influences and features of his work

Lappas was awarded a scholarship from the Watson Foundation in 1974 and travelled to India. There he studied Indian sculpture and architecture. He travelled throughout his life and was influenced significantly from his contact with other cultures.

His pieces reflect his thought process on the relationship between sculpture and space. They have an intense scholastic, surreal and mystical side to them.

In 1990 the artist’s technique and themes changed. He turned to more people-centric works, creating life-size figures. These figures feature metal mechanisms made of assembled parts. This allows them to change position and move.

A recognised artist

Lappas participated in the Venice Biennale in 1988 in Aperto. Other significant participations include the Biennale des Jeunes Artistes (1982) in Paris, the Europalia Arts Festival in Belgium (1982), the São Paulo Biennale (1987), the Venice Biennale (1990), the Gwangju Biennale (1995), the Documenta 14 (2017) in Athens and the ANTIDORON exhibition.

His works are found in many private and public collections in Greece and abroad.

George Lappas at Alpha Bank

The Alpha Bank Art Collection also includes the following pieces by the sculptor:

• Blue Sculpture
• Mock-up for the Blue Sculpture
• 3 sculptures

In other literature

Lappas’ piece is featured in the Alpha Bank publication The Works, the Landscape, the Buildings. Works of Art at the Alpha Bank Premises in Agios Stefanos, 2014.

The sculpture Acrobat is exhibited at the Alpha Bank central branch, 40 Stadiou Street, Athens.

You can visit it by appointment. Contact us to book your visit.