Lot 83: Makis Theofyllaktopoulos (Greek, born 1939) The motorcyclist 175 x 130 cm

The motorcyclist
signed in Greek and dated '78' (on the reverse)
oil on canvas
175 x 130 cm

At the forefront of neo-expressionism long before it became a mainstream trend in European painting in the 1980s, Theofylaktopoulos relied on intense line and vehement brushwork to charge his famous solitary motorcyclists with an exhilarating sense of freedom and an enduring spirit of perennial escape, daring adventure and unending youth. With the impetuous rider almost indivisible from his bike, looming out of the surrounding space and headed directly for the viewer at full throttle, this picture conveys a compelling depth of realism, not because of its descriptive accuracy but because of its swaggering virility and commanding presence. A passionate motorcyclist himself, Theofylaktopoulos holds that when riding a bike or working on the easel everything swims in motion and reality is shattered, transformed into pure energy. υ1

υ1. See Makis Theofylaktopoulos, exh. cat., Municipal Gallery of Rhodes, Olkos publ., Athens 1987, p. 25.