BMW Art Guide by Independent Collectors

Vorres Museum

3 000 years of Greek history and postwar Greek art

Exterior view folk art section. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
Exterior view folk art section. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres

In the small town of Paiania, just east of Athens, the Vorres Museum strives to preserve Greek national heritage by covering 3 000 years of the nation’s history. The nearly 6 000 works in the collection are divided into two sections: an impressive folk art collection, exhibited in four reconstructed village houses, and a museum of contemporary art, featuring paintings and sculptures by Greek artists from the second half of the twentieth century, including Lucas Samaras and Vlassis Caniaris.

INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
INTERIOR VIEW CONTEMPORARY GREEK ART. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres

The sheer diversity of the collection reflects the personality of its owner, Ian Vorres, who died in 2015. During his lifetime, the Greek expatriate lived in Canada and made a name for himself as an art critic. He also served as a liaison between Canada and Greece, authored a biography of Russian grand duchess Olga Alexandrovna, and was even mayor of Paiania. Since 2016, the museum also temporarily houses the estate of Greek painter Jannis Spyropoulos.

Exterior view folk art section. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres
Exterior view folk art section. Photo: Leonidas Vlachodiamantis + Anastassios Vorres

More Information on Vorres Museum

Paiania (1)