In 1958, Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghika embarked on a journey from West to East that lasted several months. This trip, which was instrumental in shaping his painting style, had as its main destinations America, Japan, Hong Kong, India, and Nepal.
India was the second major stop on his journey after Japan, with many of his drawings being inspired by that country, and in particular by the city of Benares (Varanasi). In India, Ghika discovered passion, mystery, and picturesque beauty, and he created a series of drawings depicting rituals, temples, women with babies, monkeys, and cows. The majority of these works were executed in India ink using the Japanese sumi technique, on handmade paper purchased from a factory in Nepal.
These drawings, together with a series of texts from his travels, are the only works that Ghika ultimately managed to publish in 1959 in a bilingual album, whose title was translated into English by Patrick Leigh Fermor. His texts and drawings are so closely interwoven that it is unclear whether the images illustrate the words or whether the words give voice to the images.
Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghika (ΠΧΓ 594) Indian women carrying loads, (1958). Indian ink on Nepal paper, 0,38 x 0,46 m. Benaki Museum – Ghika Gallery, Athens
The exhibition Ghika: A Journey to India, dedicated exclusively to Ghika’s journey to India, was inaugurated at the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), in New Delhi. The exhibition features twenty-seven drawings along with archive material. A video/animation is also presented, featuring the artist and his wife as central characters, who, through texts and drawings, guide visitors through their fascinating wanderings in the cities of India.
The exhibition was realized as a collaboration between the Benaki Museum, the NGMA, and the Greek Embassy in New Delhi, with the support of the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Indian Ministry of Culture. It is hosted in the historic Jaipur House building of the NGMA, a UNESCO-protected monument, and will remain open to the public until 12 February 2026.
Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghika (ΠΧΓ 271) Benares, India, 1958 Diluted ink and brush on paper, 0,275 x 0,575 m. Benaki Museum – Ghika Gallery, Athens
Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghika (ΠΧΓ 597) Religious ceremony, (1958). Indian ink on Nepal paper, 0,38 x 0,46 m. Benaki Museum – Ghika Gallery, Athens
The inauguration event was addressed by Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary of India’s Union Ministry of Culture, Dr Sanjeev Kishor Goutam, director general of the National Gallery of Modern Art, Ioanna Moraiti, curator of the Ghika Gallery Archive at Benaki Museum, and Aliki Koutsomitopoulou, Ambassador of Greece to India. Mr. Aggarwal and Mr. Kishor Goutam emphasized their enthusiasm for the exceptionally refined curation of the presentation of the works and for the fact that, after several decades, an exhibition of an exceptionally important Greek artist is taking place in India. The ceremony was attended by numerous artists, diplomats, friends of the Embassy and the NGMA, as well as journalists. The event received extensive coverage on television, social media, and in the press.
Read also:
A digital journey into the world of Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas
The “Generation of the Thirties” (Part Β) The return to the roots movement and Greekness in art
