Effy Alexakis

For over last four decades, Effy has been documenting the historical and contemporary presence of Greek-Australians both here and overseas, in partnership with historian Leonard Janiszewski. She is publicly recognised as ‘the photographer who popularised Greek-Australian history’ and is acclaimed as one of Australia’s leading socio-cultural documentary and portrait photographers.
Renowned for her intimate and sensitive portrait presentations, she is considered a pioneer in debunking Greek-Australian stereotypes and presenting the complex personal, diverse and evolving faces, lifestyles and occupations of Greek Australians, across generations.
Effy’s images are held in major public collections, including the National Gallery of Australia, the State Library of New South Wales and the Australian Embassy in Athens. Effy has curated and co-curated various fine art, photographic and sociocultural exhibitions, together with sociocultural installations.
Major cultural spaces around the country have exhibited her work. Effy has also exhibited internationally. Her two most significant exhibitions have been the ‘In Their Own Image: Greek-Australians’ (this is also the title to their ongoing national archive project) and ‘Selling an American Dream: Australia’s Greek Café’ that was launched at the National Museum of Australia in 2008. With Leonard, they have produced four major books; three extensive exhibition catalogues; more than 250 book chapters, articles or conference papers; and three film documentaries.
In 2022 Effy was recognised as a ‘Woman of Influence’ by the Hellenic Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HACCI) for her photographic documentary work spanning 40 years. In early 2023 Effy’s work was published in a new book, ‘Forty Photographs, A Year at a Time’ where she selected one contemporary image from her vast archive to represent each year since 1982 to the present in order to reveal the changing face of Greek-Australians.
In late 2023 she will be releasing her latest book, ‘The Heart of Giving, Father Nektarios’ Soup Kitchen’ where since early 2021 she has been documenting the work of Father Nektarios, a Greek Orthodox priest who with his many volunteers have been providing a soup kitchen from the church hall at Sts Constantine and Helen Church in the inner-west suburb of Newtown.

• BA, from Sydney University, in 1980, majoring in Fine Arts and Archaeology
• Diploma in Education (Secondary – Art), Sydney Teachers’ College, 1981
• Post-Graduate Diploma in Professional Art Studies (Photography), from Sydney’s City Art Institute, 1983

RECENT EXHIBITIONS
FORTY PHOTOGRAPHS – A YEAR AT A TIME EXHIBITION
Greek australian experience as a forty year photo chronicle, neoskosmos.com
New photo exhibition, sbs.com.au
Forty photographs year time exhibition, greekherald.com.au

SURVEY EXHIBITION
A greek australian portfolio, greekcitytimes.com
Newest exhibition combines photographic work spanning four decades, neoskosmos.com
Photo exhibition in sydney captures spirit of greek australian community, greekherald.com.au
Sydney exhibition of photographic work over past 40 years, greekherald.com.au

GREEK CAFÉ EXHIBITION
Milk bars and rock music living the american dream in a greek cafe, www.smh.com.au
Australias greek cafes, www.smh.com.au

INTERVIEWS
A visual history of greek australians, ekathimerini.com
Honouring the photographer who popularised greek australian history, neoskosmos.com
A symposium celebrating the work of the greek australian photographer, sbs.com.au