Vassily Photiades Greek, 1900-1975

The Estate of the artist
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Beginning his artistic career in Paris, Photiades exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants and at the Salon d’Automne before securing his first solo exhibition at Durand-Ruel in 1929. While his painterly career took off slowly in the French capital, Photiades relied on his skills as poet and novelist to make a living. In 1936 he moved to Lausanne in order to be close to his sick mother. It was here that he met and became friends with the Swiss painter Vallotton, and had the opportunity to regularly exhibit his paintings at the Galerie Vallotton in Lausanne, which prompted him to remain there even after the death of his mother in 1937. Although Photiadis painted numerous landscapes and still lifes, he became especially known in Switzerland for his portraits of women and young girls.

Aliki Diplarakos became Miss Greece in 1929 quite by chance. As she re-called in an interview a year later,  "My mother, some friends and I were at a tea one day last year at the British Embassy in Athens when someone for fun suggested we go look at a beauty contest being held in an Athens theatre. We went and sat in a box. The judges... suddenly called out my name. I thought they were fooling... when I tried to refuse, the President of Greece said I must accept as a patriotic duty. Three days later I found myself in Paris: I won the European contest and then had to go through with it and go to Rio." (Aliki Diplarakou, Time Archive, 13 October 1930). Having attented Brazil's International Beauty Contest in Rio de Janeiro as "Miss Europe", the eighteen year old Aliki came away as runner-up to Miss Universe. 

Fig. 1: A photo of Aliki Diplarakos
digi ref 083D05103

Fig. 2: Letter from Aliki Diplarakos to Vassily Photiades
digi ref 084D05103