Art

Art by MonAsty Hotel

inspired by the designs of ancient discoveries

Establishing its place in the Byzantine world as an intellectual center, in which many artistic currents found expression, Thessaloniki is home to many works of art, icons, mosaics and hagiographies. With the city's temples being UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and with very little artwork surviving today, MonAsty embraces art and collaborates with local and international artists to promote the city’s heritage, inspired by the Byzantine era.

Paintings by

Fikos

Fikos Antonios is the creator of the two paintings that are placed in the area of Samite Gastro Bar.
Fikos is the first modern painter-hagiographer in the world, who "marries" Byzantine with modern art and created "Modern Byzantine Art". Using new graffiti techniques, he manages to converse with the tradition that reaches back to Byzantium, creating such an impressive aesthetic effect with his art that both it and his name have traveled and become known from Europe to Mexico, through festivals, personal exhibitions, and project commissions.

This diptych work is inspired by the theme of the hotel, which is the samite silk, and is a poetic rendering of the concept of offerings, with the personified Thessaloniki (left work) as the protagonist, which receives offers from various figures related to the history of the space and the region.

On the left, the founder of the monastery of St. Stephen, which is located right next to the hotel site (now the monastery of Agia Theodora), is shown offering the monastery. Below, an angel is bringing silkworms from China to Byzantium in a stick (an incident that, according to tradition, however, was carried out by monks in the 6th century). On her right, a nun (perhaps, the Empress Anna Paleologina, who died in Thessaloniki as the nun Anastasia) holds a rosary, offering, metaphorically, the spirituality that still characterizes the urban landscape of the city with its many Byzantine and modern churches.

On the right work, angels bring flying their own offering, a silk cloth embroidered with the history of the city.

Starting the reading from the bottom left, we see references to:

the founder of the city, Cassander
the myth of his wife and half-sister of Alexander the Great of Thessaloniki as a mermaid
the Greek identity of the ancient city, indicated by an Ionic column and the star of Vergina
the Roman conquest represented by the equestrian Galerius, a composition inspired by the Galerius Arch itself in the centre of the city
the Byzantine period with the two-headed eagle and the Empress Anna Paleologina
the Jewish element which at times was dominant in the city (which was also called Madre d'Israel - Mother of Israel) and is marked by the Star of David, the seven-light lamp and the rabbi
the Ottoman conquest with the Turkish soldier, the spears and the crescent with the star as a symbol of Islam
the First Balkan War and the liberation of the city after 482 consecutive years of Ottoman occupation
and finally, in a fragmentary impression, the monogram of MonAsty and the Museum of Byzantine Culture are indicated

Collection by Monasty

Samite Silk Scarves

Samite was the favorite silk of the Byzantine emperors and their court. MonAsty in collaboration with local designers, inspired by the designs of ancient discoveries, created a series of silk scarves to revive the city's ancient heritage. The silk scarves are produced in Soufli, Greece, and are decorated in common areas within the hotel, as well as all rooms and suites. All the designs are also available for sale.

View The Designs

View The Price List

SAMITE SILK RITUALS

Learn the unique Byzantine artistry of silk.

An educational experience of time-honoured, traditional artisanry awaits you at the Samite Silk Rituals at MonAsty Thessaloniki. Join us to a journey into the Byzantine silk painting and embroidering techniques that produced the famed silks widely traded from Thessaloniki to the entire world, and master the art for a unique experience with all elements of nostalgia and artistic craftsmanship.

Monasty, Thessaloniki, Autograph Collection