Corfu - Memories

‘When one faces a photographer’s work, one rarely has the opportunity to speak of a life work that, despite its balanced artistic virtues embodies valuable information and enriches our heritage with memories of the past which have faded in the course of time and have been suppressed in the name of ‘progress’ by untoward development. Kokkalis undoubtedly achieves this dual objective through his pictures, which provide a perspective reaching across 50 years’ experience. These pictures constitute a vivid and rich depiction of his natural surroundings, namely the island of Corfu, its urban and rural landscapes, its buildings and its nature, its people and their activities. Fascinated by the magic of black and white, he wanders from the romantic mood and the melancholic ambiance of deserted piazzas, which look as if they posses a purely metaphysical quality, to the romance of the countryside along with its rich suggestiveness.’ Thanos Christou Assistant Professor of History of Art at the University of Ioannina,Greece