The painter Yiorgos Sikeliotis was born in Smyrna in 1917 and passed away in Athens in 1984.
Following the Asia Minor catastrophe, his family arrived in Athens in 1922 and settled in Kaisariani.
He studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts under Sp. Vikatos and K. Parthenis (1935-1940).
During the Axis Occupation (1941-1945), he participated in the Resistance as a founding member of the Artists’ EAM (National Liberation Front).
As a member of the “Stathmi” art group (1949), he participated in all of the group’s exhibitions.
He held his first solo exhibition at To Vima newspaper (1954) and, until his death, took part in numerous other solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad (e.g., the Alexandria Biennale, 1957). In 2024-2025, his work was showcased at the major Teloglion Foundation of Arts exhibition titled “Tassos – Sikeliotis: A friendship with common roots”.
He had been nominated for the Guggenheim Prize, receiving an honorable mention (1960).
His painting aligns with the spirit of the Generation of the ’30s, with visual foundations rooted in folk tradition and Shadow Theater. His compositions are dominated by human figures and landscapes, while the influence of Byzantine art is clearly visible.