About
Yiannis Roussakis has been living and working around the world since 2004. His journey with photography began in the 1980s when he bought his first Zenit analog camera at a flea market in Athens as a teenager. After studying physics and telecommunications engineering, Yiannis spent a decade working on major event technology projects. In 2012, he transitioned to a career as a professional photographer and visual artist.
Yiannis has showcased his work in solo and collective exhibitions in cities such as London, Athens, Budapest, Glasgow, Tokyo, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi. He believes in dogs, coffee, and companionship. He describes his collage aesthetic as "Carl Jung shaking daiquiris in space."
UAE Photo Heritage Archive
Yiannis has dedicated over a decade to documenting and celebrating the country’s heritage. Since 2013, Yiannis has built an extensive photographic archive capturing the landscapes, traditions, and cultural identity of the UAE. His work has been extensively featured in both local and international media and acknowledged for over a decade.
The World of “Live Like This”
“This series is a collection of digital collages that explore the strange, fragmented nature of modern life. Using elements from mid-century advertising, pop culture, propaganda, art history, and film, I piece together new realities—ones that feel oddly familiar yet slightly off-kilter. My work plays with nostalgia, not as a longing for the past but as a way to examine the present. What happens when you take the imagery of optimism and progress from the post-war era and place it in today’s world of uncertainty? What new meaning emerges when symbols of mass culture are stripped from their original context and rearranged?
At its core, Live Like This is about contradiction. The collages are playful but unsettling, humorous yet reflective, polished yet chaotic. They celebrate beauty while exposing its artificiality. In this universe, the past and future fold into each other, and the human figure—sometimes triumphant, sometimes lost—oscillates between self-glorification and self-destruction. It’s a space where nostalgia and dystopia sit side by side, where moments of bliss exist under the shadow of something more ominous.
I don’t create with a strict message in mind. Instead, I let these images evolve organically, allowing the combinations to suggest their own narratives. Some of them feel like snapshots from a dream, others like visual puzzles waiting to be deciphered. I like the idea that each viewer brings their own interpretation—that someone might see a sense of absurd joy while another feels an undercurrent of unease.
This isn’t just a collection of artworks; it’s an exploration of how we see, remember, and make sense of our surroundings. It’s a space to pause, question, and maybe even laugh at the spectacle of it all.”
Timeline
2024 - Liwa, Western Region UAE - Art project on local cultural heritage and environment (12 month duration / delivery 2025)
2023 - Collective Exhibition, “Creative Solitude”, Dogma Athens + MACART Culture Space, Athens, Greece
2022 - Solo Exhibition, "LIVE LIKE THIS", MACART Culture Space, Athens, Greece
2020 - Shinwa Contemporary Art Auction, Collective, “This Is Not a Drill”, Tricera Art Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
2019 - Solo Exhibition, "Storytellers", FN Design Gallery, Al Serkal, Dubai, UAE
2018 - Solo Exhibition, "Million Street", FN Design Gallery, Al Quoz Festival, Al Serkal, Dubai, UAE
2018 - Solo Exhibition, "Million Street", FN Designs Gallery, Gulf Photo Plus Photo Week, Al Serkal, Dubai, UAE
2017 - Solo Exhibition, "Songs for Everyone", Etihad Modern At Gallery, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2017 - Publishing collaboration with Monda Gallery UAE (Al Serkal Cultural Foundation, Kinokuniya Bookstores Dubai, etc)
2017 - Collective exhibition of selected work, UR Gallery, Nation Towers, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2016 - Solo Exhibition "Million Street", Art Moments Festival, Várkert Bazár, Budapest, Hungary
2016 - Collective Exhibition, Art Market Budapest, Etihad Modern Art/Hybrid Art Management, Budapest, Hungary
2016 - Solo Exhibition "Million Street", Etihad Modern At Gallery, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2016 - Collective Exhibition, "Kodak Nation", No White Walls Art Show, Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2015 - "Secret Landscapes" selected by Etihad Airways for all double deck A380 aircrafts First Class lounges
2015 - Collective Exhibition, Dubai World Cup - The Meydan Hotel, Horse Racing Club , Dubai, UAE
2015 - Collective Exhibition, "Human Condition", No White Walls Art Show, Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2014 - Collective Exhibition, "Art Souq", Abu Dhabi, UAE
2014 - Collective Exhibition, No White Walls Art Show, Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2014 - Prix de la Photographie Paris PX3 - Professional Category / Portraiture - Bronze Award 3rd Place
2013 - Permanent exhibit at Etihad Modern Art Gallery, Abu Dhabi, UAE / Resident Artist
2013 - Commissioned by UAE Government to provide local heritage imagery in all Embassies and Consulates worldwide
2013 - Solo Exhibition, "Archetype"- Art Hub, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2013 - Solo Exhibition "Secret Landscapes"- Etihad Modern Art Gallery, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2013 - Solo Exhibition "Grand Mosque" - Etihad Modern Art Gallery, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2012 - "Huts at Sur, Oman" - Commended photo/Open Category, 2012 Sony World Photography Awards
2012 - Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition, Somerset House, London, UK
2012 - Solo Exhibition, "Dreamt I Was Walking On Earth" - Katakouzenos Museum, Syntagma Square, Athens, Greece
2012 - Collective exhibition - 60 Years, 60 Artists (Diamond Jubilee of HRH Queen Elizabeth II) - Virginia Galleries, Glasgow, UK
2012 - Merchant City Festival - pop up exhibition in various locations in the city, Glasgow, UK
2011 - Collective exhibition - Virginia Gallery, Merchant City , Glasgow, UK
1992 - Collective exhibitions in Patras and Athens, Greece (under the aegis of Plato Rivelis/Athens Photography Cycle)