The Mihalarias Gallery and Studio, housed in the fully-restored Neo-Classical mansion previously owned by the prominent Stathatos family, has become the focus for a renewed interest and vitality in Grecian art.

"Restoration is a philosophy, not actually a job," says Mihalarias. "To be a restorer you have to commit yourself to that philosophy even if it means you are not always popular. The art must always come before the owner. I say to people, 'Although you own this icon or painting which is already 500 years old, you are going to be dead, together with me. The decision on its restoration is not yours, actually, it is mine, because I believe I know exactly how it should be done. If you want it done differently, you either do it yourself or take it to someone else'. This can be very difficult to say to a wealthy man who is used to people saying yes, but I am not a yes man and I never will be.

"The idea is that you could restore the Parthenon, make it perfect, but it would no longer be the Parthenon. Restoration should only be conservation. The old restorers used to fool people; they would copy one half of a painting to replace the damaged half. While the owner may have been pleased by their work, the painting is no longer the sole work of the original artist. One must let the imagination of the people complete the image for often the imagination is much better than reality. A lot of people start cleaning up a painting as soon as they get it in their studio, but this is hard of heart. You must take the time to get to know an object. Gradually a relationship forms between the object and the restorer and the object comes to ask of the restorer what needs to be done."