Michalis MANOUSAKIS was born in Chania, Crete, in 1953.

He studied painting at the Athens School of Fine Arts from 1979 to 1984, under Demosthenes Kokkinidis and Dimitris Mytaras. He presented his first solo exhibition in Thessaloniki, at Diagonios Gallery, in 1979. He later taught painting at the children’s section of the Art Workshop at Chalkida from 1985 to 1990 and at Demosthenes Kokkinidis’ workshop at the Athens School of Fine Arts from 1987 to 1994.

Manousakis is one of the significant Greek painters of his generation. His work is mainly anthropocentric, focusing on the human figure and its relationship with memory, space and the surrounding world. His compositions often present simplified figures, fragments of bodies, objects and symbolic interiors, creating a visual language marked by introspection and emotional depth.

His painting is characterised by expressive colour, strong draughtsmanship and a distinctive balance between figuration and abstraction. Through the human form, he explores themes of identity, vulnerability, personal memory and existential reflection. His works often possess a poetic and contemplative atmosphere, where the figure appears both present and elusive.

Since 1979, Michalis Manousakis has presented his work in solo and group exhibitions in Greece and abroad. In 1994, together with Marios Spiliopoulos, Antonis Michailidis, Vicky Tsalamata and Edward Sakayan, he received the award for Best National Pavilion at the Alexandria Biennale. In 2014, he was elected Full Professor at the Athens School of Fine Arts.

Works by Michalis Manousakis are held in important public and private collections in Greece and abroad. He lives and works in Athens and remains recognised as an important contemporary Greek painter, admired for the psychological intensity, poetic character and human-centred vision of his work.