Χωριάτικο δρομάκι

002996 Nikos Yialouris, Village alley, 1987, Indian ink on cardboard, 40 × 15 cm

The small alleys of the traditional villages of Chios fascinated Yialouris and inspired a number of drawings and engravings. Not infrequently, he adopted an elongated composition, which developed in height and culminated either at a certain point in the landscape or in an architectural detail. This drawing shows a small alleyway in a medieval village (possibly Mesta or Pyrgi). The composition opens on the first level with a few sacks stacked in the corner of a wall, next to the alley. Between the sides of the street rise the old, stone houses, joined by a stone arch (doxarada, as it is called on the island). At the top, a cylindrical mass should be identified with a fortified tower. The artist carefully captures the village, but does not subordinate his design to realism. He rejects straight lines, he breaks the strictness of the buildings, and with a loose style, gives the composition freedom and movement. Ultimately, the austere landscape seems to dance under the light, denying its heavy, tectonic nature.