New Art Show “Coffee Cigarettes Amore,” Opening in New York City

Coffee Cigarettes Amore, a new series of paintings by Greek artist Kyvèli Zoi, will be featured in a new art show that debuted on Wednesday in New York City.

The show, with art exploring the inner pondering of unhealthy habits and how to work with them, will be the first solo exhibition in New York City by the painter, who completed her BFA at the School of Visual Arts New York City in 2016 after attending classes at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 2014 and Central St. Martin’s College of Art and Design in London in 2012.

Zoi is the daughter of the beloved and highly acclaimed Greek-American chef Diane Kochilas, who has authored a number of books and starred in television series on Greek cuisine.

Coffee Cigarettes Amore an homage to Jim Jarmusch film “Coffee and Cigarettes”

The show, which opened on February 3rd at the Elma Gallery, 216 Plymouth Street in Brooklyn, will run through March 13th.

Coffee Cigarettes Amore, the new series of paintings by Zoi, was praised by the gallery, which stated in an announcement “By creating an homage to Jim Jarmusch’s film “Coffee and Cigarettes”, she uses repetitive symbols and structures to tell a linear story of a beloved daily routine that ends up becoming toxic.

“Figures and tightly framed gestural details refer to memory and projection of oneself while foregrounding moments of tension. Kyveli portrays instances of crisis within the assumed routine in an attempt to personify the combination of nicotine, caffeine and heartbreak.”

Zoi, who was born in 1993 in Athens, Greece, is a multidisciplinary artist who is currently living and working in Athens.

She has held four solo shows and has participated in numerous group exhibitions in Europe and the United States, the most recent being “Rien Ne Va Plus” at Waldburger Wouters Gallery in Brussels and “Animal Show” a group exhibition at Acappella Gallery in Naples.

Zoi, whose work features in many private collections across the globe, is also the director of KYAN, a new project space she founded in Athens in June of 2021. She has been awarded the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship by ARTWORKS for 2021-22.

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The Elma Gallery notes that “The series focuses on a personal contemplation of one’s bad habits and the lack of clarity within them, while insisting that love is the only thing worth living for. It is the first time throughout her practice that she attempts a self portrait in search of an honest reflection. Utilizing heartache and the quest for self love, she achieves a form of introspection within the metaphorical atmospheres of her paintings.”