Einladung zum Vortrag
am 24. Juni 2026, um 18:15 Uhr im Hörsaal der Kunstgeschichte
(Georg Forster-Gebäude, Raum 02-521)

This lecture follows the footsteps of Domenikos Theotokopoulos from his native town of Candia, the capital of Venetian Crete, to Venice. It focuses on the icons he executed while living and working in Candia (modern Heraklion), as well as on the works he produced after his arrival and during his brief stay in Venice. The lecture also discusses documents discovered in the Archivio di Stato di Venezia, which shed light on Domenikos’ upbringing in Candia and his formation as a painter, up to the time he departed for Venice.

Biographical note: Maria Vassilaki is Professor emerita in Byzantine Art History at the University of Thessaly, Volos, Greece. She’s also a member of the Benaki Museum Board of Trustees. She received her BA from the University of Athens and her PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London. Her published work focuses on the study of Late-Byzantine and Cretan icon-painting with an emphasis on the status of the icon-painter in society and the technology of icons. She has published a wide range of monographs and papers on art, artists, and society in Venetian Crete.