Nikos Alexiou was born on the island of Crete in 1960.

At the age of 22 he moved to Austria to study at The Viennese Academy of Fine Arts. Two years later, he returned to Greece and studied at The School of Fine Arts, Athens.

In 1985, Alexiou held his first solo exhibition at Desmos Gallery in Athens. He used basic materials and those commonly found in nature such as rock, wood, mud and water.

In 1987, he continued to experiment with natural elements by venturing into decomposition. He created Prisms, a series of works which analyzes the projection of white light into different spaces, even through rain. He later created Solar Houses, minimalistic constructions of cane and reeds which share a fragile feeling of absolute geometry.

Alexiou represented Greece at the 2007 Venice Biennale with the work The End.

Alexiou collected art from an early age. In 2009, he curated an exhibition of his collection, work by seventy modern and contemporary artists, at the Bazeos Tower in Naxos. The tower is a 17th-century tower that was built as a monastery. His collection included Adam Chodzko, Bernhard Cella, Amy O’Neill, Jim Shaw, Jimmie Durham, Andisheh Avini, Yuken Teruya, Antonis Kiriakoulis, Deanna Maganias, Giannoulis Chalepas, Elena Poka, Ilias Kafouros, Kostis Velonis, Dimitris Papaioannou, Mantalina Psoma, Emmanouil Zacharioudakis, Simon Periton, Marie Francoise Poutays, Mary Redmont, Michael Michaeledes, Minas, Spyros Litinas, Stephen Dean, Vasso Gavaisse, Lydia Venieri, Vangelis Vlahos and Yorgos Papountzis. The exhibition was an expression of the artistry of Alexiou (as much as his own work). The collection echoed his development as an artist. The work of preparing the exhibition reflected his passion, while the tower itself was featured in Alexiou’s video productions of the show.