Pylon Art & Culture x DEO invite visual artists from or based in Cyprus to apply for a one-to-one crit session with curator Akis Kokkinos.

As part of Kokkinos’ ongoing engagement with the Cypriot artistic community, marking the fourth year of his collaboration with PYLON, we are expanding the opportunity to have a crit session with him to more artists from/in Cyprus.

Who is eligible?

Visual artists from or based in Cyprus, at any stage of their practice – emerging, mid-career or established artists are welcome to apply.

Practicalities

• The artist should be available to meet with the curator in Cyprus between: 26–30 October 2026..
• The meeting can take place at the artist’s studio or in another space agreed upon.
• The language of the crit session can be in English or Greek.
• The session will last no longer than one and a half hours.

BIO of Akis Kokkinos:

Akis Kokkinos is a contemporary art curator and the founder of DEO, the first contemporary art organisation on Chios Island, Greece.

He has curated exhibitions and programmes for major organisations such as the Irene Y. Panagopoulos Collection, the B&M Theocharakis Foundation, Pylon Arts & Culture, NEON Organisation for Culture and Development D. Daskalopoulos, Gasworks, Fundación Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, and Art Athina, among others.

Kokkinos has received numerous international awards, fellowships, and residencies, including the Fulbright Fellowship at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (2024, NYC), the SAHA Curatorial Residency supported by ARTWORKS (2023, Istanbul), the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship by ARTWORKS (2022, Athens), the Young Curators Residency Program at the Fundación Sandretto Re Rebaudengo (2021, Madrid), and the “Develop Your Creative Practice” grant by Arts Council England (2021, London).

He has also served as a jury member for Gasworks’s Greek residency selection programme in London for the years 2025 and 2026, and has been invited as visiting curator to major international residencies, including the Delfina Foundation, Gasworks, ISCP, and SAHA, while he has curated all six of DEO’s summer exhibitions since its creation in 2021.

Kokkinos received his MA in Curating Contemporary Art at the Royal College of Art (2018–2020), fully funded by a double NEON scholarship, the Schilizzi Foundation, and the RCA continuation fund.

ABOUT DEO:

Since 2024, DEO has been collaborating continuously with Pylon Art & Culture, strengthening the cultural ties between Chios and Cyprus. Pylon supports Cypriot artists in presenting existing works or developing new commissions for DEO exhibitions in Chios, as well as the fieldwork required, and organises joint talks to promote cultural exchange between the two countries. Past participants include: Eleni Odysseos (2026), Lito Kattou (2026), Maria Loizidou (2025), and Socratis Socratous (2024-5).

DEO is the only contemporary art organisation on Chios island. Since 2021, it has delivered a diverse range of programmes that attract a broad audience of both Greek and international visitors. Their vision is for DEO to serve as a platform for transnational dialogue while actively supporting the island’s cultural infrastructure.