"Beta Eruption" Print

Fotios Zemenides was born a refugee, his mother fleeing the Turkish invasion of Cyprus with him in utero, while his father stayed behind to fight. The very nature of his existence is a paradox, for he is both a child of Chicago simultaneously living with a reality unfulfilled Displaying aptitude in the visual arts from a young age, he chose to pursue his undergraduate studies in fine art and art history at DePaul University in Chicago. Paul Jaskot introduced him to the notion of understanding art by becoming a student of history, thus placing the work in its socio-political context. As the very essence of social justice was ingrained into his being from a young age, his intended goal was to use his abilities to create art that force the viewer to question the way of things and ask difficult moral and ethical questions of themselves. After a 5 year attempt to bring issues of inequity to life in the world of urban planning and development he returned to art, receiving a Master of Fine Art in painting and drawing at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. Under the tutelage of Joe Kegler at the Chicago Fine Art Foundry, he mastered the process of bronze and aluminum casting for sculpture. He also studied classical academic principals of painting and anatomy under David Jamieson and Melinda Whitmore from the Vitruvian Fine Art Studio. He is currently a member of the North Shore Art League where he practices with veteran printmakers Audrey Niffenegger, Bert Menco, Diane Thodos, Paula Campbell, Elizabeth Ockwell and Diane Dorigan. Via the Beverly Arts Center, he acts as an outreach art instructor for underprivileged youth in Chicago's South Side and is a staunch promoter for increased government subsidy of Art education via the Illinois Arts Alliance. As a member of the Advisory Committee for the National Hellenic Museum, he is working to guide the institution to become a significant player in the art and culture advocacy infrastructure of the Midwest. He lives in Chicago with his wife Joanne who is an elementary school teacher.