Our History | Zoumboulakis Galleries

Theodoros A Zoumboulakis opens an antique shop in Athens. Specializing in rare artworks and antiquities, the shop becomes well known among the collectors of the period.

The involvement of the Zoumboulakis family with art and its various forms started in the beginning of the 20th century when Theodore Zoumboulakis opened his first antique shop in Edward Law Street in the center of Athens. It was in 1966 that Tassos Zoumboulakis with his wife Peggy, continuing the family tradition, opened -along with the antique shop, a new space of contemporary art in 7 Kriezotou street. It has hosted, together with Kriezotou 7, some of the most well established and internationally acclaimed Greek and foreign artists. In the 1970s Zoumboulakis Galleries exhibited Dali, Magritte, De Chirico, Picasso (1979 in collaboration with Bayeler Gallery), Warhol. They have also introduced to the greek art public, movements such as Neo-realism in collaboration with Alexandre Iolas Gallery (Arman, Cesar, Deschamps, Dufrene, Klein, Niki de Saint Phalle etc.) and Kinetic Art with Denise René Gallery (Agam, Calder, Cruz-Diez, Soto, Vasarely etc.). Meanwhile important Greek artists established often a long-term collaboration with the Gallery. Moralis, Tsarouhis, Takis, Tsoklis, Akrithakis, Pavlos and Chryssa Fassianos exhibited their work there during the last decades.

The Zoumboulakis Gallery takes a radical step for a gallery of that period, opening a new, 450 square metre exhibition space at 20 Kolonaki Square, in the nerve-centre of Athens. This massive space is the first of its kind in Greece, offering artists a state-of the-art venue for the display of large-scale works, and attracting a broader audience to contemporary art. Takis, already well-known abroad as a sculptor, inaugurates the gallery with a stunning array of his most important work. Chryssa follows, with the first Greek showing of her massive, world-renowned sculptures. A new cultural age is dawning in Athens, and the Zoumboulakis Gallery bears the hallmark of a new era. Through Iolas, important foreign artists are becoming known here, whilst the Zoumboulakis Gallery is forging collaborations; with the Denise René Gallery in Paris, the Beyeler Gallery in Basle for a Picasso exhibition, and with Gimpel Fils in London. The Gallery hosts such spectacular exhibitions as The Neorealist Movement curated by the art critic Pierre Restany, and Mirrors of the Mind which was curated and introduced by the poet and friend of the Gallery, Nicolas Callas, and many other events of note. Contemporary art is ever-increasingly a part of the lives and homes of Athenians. A new, internationally aware spirit is spreading, also affecting interior design. The number of art lovers and collectors is burgeoning, and new ideas are taking hold.

The Zoumboulakis Gallery opens a new multi-purpose cultural space off Pireos Avenue in Athens. Designed by architect Theodore Zoumboulakis in a former factory, it hosts exhibits, performances, and events that blend timeless objects with modern works—a combination quickly embraced by the Greek public.

Daphne Zoumboulakis takes over the management of the Kolonaki Square Gallery. Artists from the generations of the 80’s and 90’s join the Gallery. In 2007, the Zone D project is established to mount exhibitions outside the gallery spaces, showcasing new trends in contemporary art.

With the opening of Art-Design-Antiques at 6 Kriezotou Street, the Zoumboulakis Galleries expand further. This space blends contemporary art with past and future aesthetics, avoiding artificial luxury and embracing originality, quality, imagination, and humor. The gallery collaborates with international brands like Established & Sons, Astier De Villatte, and Magis. Notable works include Zaha Hadid's Aqua Table and Philippe Starck's Baobab desk. The architectural design is managed by Zoumboulakis Architects.

Giorgos Gyparakis, from his solo exhibition Depfrogging, 2014

Ioanna Ralli, from her solo exhibition Dreams & Symbols, January-February 2016

20 Kolonaki Square Zoumboulakis Gallery is renovated by Theodore Zoumboulakis (Zoumboulakis Architects) and re-opens with the important historical exhibition “321 | 426 | 52” which presented posters from the Gallery’s course, from the 60’s up to nowadays.

2018 WINDOW INSTALLATION | ''Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Ιnfinity''

Exhibition 321-426-52, November 2018

Filippos Theodoridis, solo exhibition Playground Bay, May-June 2019, Photo credits Thanassis Gatos.

The spring of 2020 marked an unprecedented experience for our generation. Zoumboulakis Galleries adapted to the conditions of restriction due to the pandemic of COVID – 19, proposing new ways of viewing the exhibitions. It consolidated the digital presence of its programing into a new website, exclusively dedicated to contemporary art through new collaborations with artists and curators.