Theodore Nikolaou

Artist in Residence

Supporting Organization:

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Based in: Greece

Participated in: Evia Local Urban Lab

Theodore Nikolaou is a photographer and journalist, born in 1982 in Chalkis, Greece. He specializes in social reporting, conducting numerous investigations and field assignments worldwide. His work consistently focuses on people, with key areas of interest including mental health, refugee movements, economic, ecological, and pandemic crises, socially vulnerable groups, and societal transformations. His articles, projects, research, and interviews have been published in media in Greece and abroad. His work has also been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions worldwide. He holds a Master’s degree in Photography and Visual Language, a Bachelor’s degree in Economic Sciences, and has specialized in Documentary Photography. He teaches Documentary Photography and Visual Storytelling at photography schools and workshops.

"Ancestors", 2025

“Ancestors” is a photographic project that explores the relationship between humans and nature, the trauma caused by its destruction, as well as the personal experiences of both the photographer, who hails from Northern Evoia, and its inhabitants.

The first section documents the devastating fires and subsequent floods of 2021, events that left an indelible mark on the region’s natural and social landscape. In the second section, the focus shifts to the aftermath: the scarred landscape and the people who remain in their homeland, the changes brought about by recovery in the environment and in the residents’ psyche, with an emphasis on the feeling of loss that remains unhealed.

The third section presents Polaroid diptychs, in an effort to capture the dialectical relationship between humans and the environment. In the fourth and final section, the residents themselves become narrators of their own lives: twin siblings, Marianiki and Christos, photograph their daily lives in a remote village in Northern Evoia, creating a personal “photo voice” that explores concepts such as memory, identity, and the democratic nature of the photographic medium. At the same time, the cell phone is transformed from a communication device into a tool for producing memories and photographic artifacts.

Through these four sections, Ancestors does not limit itself to simply documenting a place or a story, but aims to be a profound exploration of our relationship with the environment, the memories we carry, and the resilience of the people who continue to live, narrate, and recreate their place.