The sculptor Yannoulis Chalepas was born in Pyrgos, Tinos, in 1851 and passed away in Athens in 1938.
Continuing the family tradition in sculpture, he studied at the School of Arts under L. Drosis (1869–1872). The following year, he traveled to Munich and apprenticed in the studio of M.R. von Windmann.
Upon returning to Athens in 1876, he opened his own workshop.
In 1877–1878, the first symptoms of his illness appeared, which worsened shortly after, leading to his confinement at the Corfu Psychiatric Hospital (1888–1902).
From 1902 to 1930, he lived in isolation on Tinos until his niece, Irene V. Chalepa, moved him to Athens (1930), where he spent the final years of his life.
His works were presented for the first time at the Olympia exhibition (1875) and in solo exhibitions held at the Academy of Athens (1925) and the Art Asylum (1928).
The Academy of Athens recognized his contribution by awarding him the Medal of Excellence in Arts (1927).
His work is divided into three periods: in the first (1870–1878), the influences of 19th-century Neoclassicism are clearly visible. In the second (1902–1930), he broke away from the academicism of the first period. In the third and final period (1930–1938), his expressive idiom became more austere, incorporating elements of modernist movements (Cubism, Expressionism, Surrealism).