The History of the Gallery
The Municipal Art Gallery of Chios was established by a series of decisions of the Municipal Council and the Prefecture of Chios in 1994 (Decisions of the Municipal Council of Chios, 22 & 176/1994 and E.S.6308/26-7-1994 N.Ch.) and operated in the building of the former Municipal Baths from April 1994.
The initial core of the Municipal Art Gallery consisted of donations from the Chios painter and writer Yannis Mitarakis (Jean Mitta) and the collectors Nikolaos and Marianna Diomataris. In the same year, the donation of Erissos Melekos and works by various artists and collectors were added.
The establishment of the Gallery housed works that had been donated to the Municipality of Chios over many years and undertook to organize visual and general artistic activities in the Municipality of Chios with exhibitions, events, and interventions in the city’s public spaces.
In 2003, the Chiot engraver and painter, who was a pioneer in the stablishment of the Gallery and the author of its first Regulations, donated all the works in his possession as well as the objects in his home to the Municipality of Chios with the aim of organizing the Gialouris Museum. The museum operated for a few years in a municipal building until it was incorporated into the Municipal Art Gallery.
Since its establishment, the Municipal Art Gallery of Chios has been part of the Department of Social Protection, Education, and Culture and, according to the Regulations, is administered by the Mayor of Chios, the service, and the Artistic Committee of the Gallery.
The Municipal Art Gallery is currently undergoing renovation. Selected works are exhibited at the neighboring Homer Cultural Center and on the internet, while studies, maintenance, and development projects are being carried out on the entire collection and the Loutra building.