Insiders Track: 10 Unmissable Exhibits at the Goulandris Foundation

The Basil & Elise Goulandris Museum in Athens is a leading cultural landmark dedicated to modern and contemporary art. Housing an extensive collection amassed by its founders, the museum highlights their passion for art and commitment to sharing it with the public.

Visitors can immerse themselves in over 180 works that span diverse styles and movements, presented in an elegant and thoughtfully designed space. The museum offers a serene and inspiring ambiance, complemented by a range of amenities, including a museum shop and a cafe. Its vision combines art, education, and engagement, making it a cornerstone of Athens’ cultural scene.

We asked the museum to select the 10 artworks in their permanent collection that visitors should definitely see, especially when they have limited time. Marie Koutsomallis-Moreau, Head of Collections at the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation, made the selection and offered her valuable know-how for our readers.

Through this very familiar theme, Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco) shows his ability in reconciling, on a single painting, the Greek Orthodox and Spanish Catholic worlds of the 16^th Century.

This self portrait by Cézanne is widely known after it was copied and engraved by Edouard Vuillard. It was also a source of inspiration for Alberto Giacometti, who considered Cézanne as his one true master.

Passion seen through the eyes of Rodin. This sculpture is a subtle reference to his painful love story with Camille Claudel. 

Van Gogh singled out two works as being his favorites to his brother Theo, during the decisive year of 1888. One of them was Still Life with Coffee Pot.

One of Monet’s favorite versions of his series dedicated to the Rouen Cathedral, which he kept especially for his American patron James F. Sutton.

The only sculpture Degas ever exhibited and which provoked one of the most astounding scandals in the history of Modern Art.

Besides being a talented painter, sculptor and engraver, Gauguin was a very gifted craftsman, who could create different kinds of objects for his everyday life. This cane in particular is engraved with his initials, which form the central figure’s ears. 

Modigliani’s Caryatid, although inspired by the damsels adorning the Erechtheion on the Acropolis and the voluptuous figures of the arts of the Hamar and the Guinean Gulf, is highly personal and therefore represents a landmark for the artist.

One of the most masterful depictions of Marthe in her bath, a subject Bonnard preferred above all else.

A very moving reinterpretation of the human portrait, painted by Klee after he was forced to leave Germany, a few months after Hitler’s appointment as chancellor.