Alpha News

Mourning for the Loss of Multi-Talented Artist Kostas Kavkaridis

Published January 22, 2026, 19:20

The Deputy Ministry of Culture expressed its deep sorrow for the death of Kostas Kavkaridis, a prominent Cypriot artist who was active for over five decades in the fields of visual arts, scenography, and costume design. Born in Nicosia in 1945 and a graduate of the Sofia Academy of Fine Arts, Kavkaridis was a founding member of the Cyprus Theatre Organisation (CTO), undertaking the scenography and costume design for many of its productions, including works such as 'Don Camillo', 'A Story in Irkutsk', and 'Lysistrata'. Furthermore, Kavkaridis played a crucial role in the creation of the 'New Theatre' and the 'Satirical Theatre', as well as the first higher education drama school in Cyprus, the 'Vladimiros Kavkaridis Drama School'. He taught scenography and costume design at the school for many years and served as Director of the Vladimiros Kavkaridis Cultural Centre from 1987 to 2018. Alongside his theatrical activities, Kavkaridis worked as an art teacher in secondary education, compiling two textbooks for the Ministry of Education and Culture: 'History of Art from the Renaissance to the 20th Century' and 'Technical Drawing'. From 2002 to 2008, he participated in the publication of the cultural magazine 'On Stage'. In 2017, he was honoured together with the Turkish Cypriot theatre artist Yasar Ersoy by the 'Stelios Hadjiioannou Foundation' for their long-term collaboration with the Turkish Cypriot Municipal Theatre of Nicosia. Their collaboration was captured in the album 'The Theatre Crosses Borders', which was published in Greek and Turkish. The Deputy Ministry of Culture emphasized that Kavkaridis' work left a significant mark on the Cypriot art scene and expressed its condolences to his family.