Yiannis MORALIS was born in Arta, Greece, in 1916 and died in Athens in 2009.

He moved with his family to Athens in 1927 and, from an early age, attended Sunday painting classes at the Athens School of Fine Arts. In 1931, he entered the preparatory section of the School and later studied painting under Dimitrios Geraniotis, Konstantinos Parthenis and Umvertos Argyros. From 1933, he also attended engraving classes in the workshop of Yannis Kefallinos. In 1936, he received a scholarship from the Academy of Athens, which allowed him to continue his studies in Rome and Paris, where he studied painting, fresco and mosaic.

Moralis became one of the most important Greek artists of the twentieth century and a central figure of the “Generation of the Thirties”. His work brought together classical balance, modern abstraction and a deep sensitivity to the human figure. Throughout his career, he developed a personal visual language marked by clarity of form, harmony, restraint and poetic emotional depth.

His paintings often focus on the female figure, couples, funerary subjects, interiors and abstracted human forms. Over time, his work moved from early realism towards increasingly simplified and geometric compositions, while retaining a strong sense of lyricism and human presence. His mature works are characterised by refined colour, balanced structure and a quiet monumental quality.

Alongside his painting, Moralis worked in engraving, illustration, ceramics, stage design and architectural decoration. He collaborated with important architects and created compositions for public and private buildings, including the decorative designs for the Athens Hilton Hotel. He also designed sets and costumes for theatre productions, working with major Greek theatrical institutions.

In 1947, he was elected professor at the Athens School of Fine Arts, where he taught for many decades and influenced generations of Greek artists. In 1949, he was a founding member of the Armos group, together with other leading figures of modern Greek art.

Yiannis Moralis exhibited widely in Greece and abroad and represented Greece at the Venice Biennale in 1958. His works are held in major public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Greece. He remains recognised as one of the defining figures of modern Greek painting, admired for the elegance, discipline and timeless humanism of his work.