The Gallery Space of the Heraklion Municipal Art Gallery presents a powerful solo exhibition by internationally and nationally awarded photographer and visual artist Nikos Basias. Titled "From North to South – In the Footsteps of Memory", this deeply emotional journey traces the geography and history of elementary schools across Greece, Cyprus and Smyrna, through haunting, poetic images.

Basias doesn't just photograph buildings. He captures their soul.
Each shot is a slice of collective childhood. Chalk marks that once filled blackboards seem etched into time itself.

Some of these schools are still standing. Some have been abandoned. Others bear the scars of fire and destruction. But in every frame, memory persists—as do the people who once walked those corridors, bringing the past into quiet conversation with the present.

Before arriving in Heraklion, the exhibition travelled as a cultural journey in its own right. It was hosted in traditional cafés, from the northern villages of Chania to the southern seaside of Sougia, weaving itself into the rhythms of local communities and fostering direct engagement with viewers.

Now, at the Heraklion Gallery, visitors can experience the project in its entirety—with new photographs, prints in various sizes and materials, and thematic groupings accompanied by texts and personal testimonies that invite a truly immersive emotional experience.

This is not a farewell to the past. It’s an invitation to return—to the hallways we once raced through, the desks where we laughed, the windows where we watched the world open up. It’s a call to brush away the dust and remember what we thought we had forgotten.

It’s a tribute.
To the schools that lived, taught, and raised generations.
To the people who still remember them.
And perhaps, to our own childhoods.

The exhibition is accompanied by the album “Memories in Dust”, published with the support of the Regional Unit of Chania, the Municipality of Kantanos-Selino, and the Municipality of Platanias. Copies will be distributed free of charge on opening night.

Exhibition Details:
“From North to South – In the Footsteps of Memory”
Photography by Nikos Basias
📍 Gallery Space of the Heraklion Municipal Art Gallery, Chrysostomou 8, Heraklion
📅 Exhibition Dates: Monday 2 – Friday 27 February 2026
🎉 Opening Night: Monday 2 February 2026
🕕 Arrival from 18:00 – Artistic presentation with live music and narration starts at 18:30
🕘 Opening Hours: Monday to Friday, 10:00–14:00 & 18:00–21:00
🎟️ Admission: Free

📞 Info & Contact: Tel: +30 2810 339067 | Email: artgallery@heraklion.gr
🌐 heraklionartgallery.gr
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