Midilli’s Secret Valley and the Painter in the Plane Tree

Karini Valley, Theophilos, and a Story Extending to İzmir

Many visitors to Lesbos Island see the ports of Petra, Molivos, or Mytilene. However, for those wishing to discover the true spirit of the island, there is a small valley hidden along the Agiasos road: Karini.

It appears as a small dot on the maps. Yet once you enter the valley, you feel time slow down.

Giant plane trees stretching along the riverbank…

The cool shade of chestnut forests…

And the incessant flow of water…

It is right here that one of the most intriguing art stories of Lesbos is hidden.

A Painter's Refuge: Karini Valley

Karini is today a small settlement which can almost be considered abandoned. According to the 2021 census, it has no permanent population. So, in fact, it is more like an ancient stop left in nature.

However, what makes Karini special is not only its nature.

In the middle of the valley, rising by the river, there is a giant plane tree. Over time, its trunk has been hollowed out, and its interior is almost like a small cave.

Visitors can still enter this tree today.

And at that moment, one thought passes through a person’s mind:

“Did he really live here?”

Because one of the most interesting stories told about the famous folk painter of Lesbos, Theophilos Hatzimihail, is based on this tree.

According to local tales, Theophilos sometimes came to the Karini Valley, stayed in the natural hollow of this plane tree, and painted on the walls of the surrounding cafés and taverns.

Although many of those walls have been erased today, faint traces of paint can still be seen in some places.

A Life Stretching from İzmir to Lesbos

The story of Theophilos actually does not belong solely to Lesbos.

The young painter, who left his home at a young age, went to İzmir (Smyrna) for a while. At that time, İzmir was one of the liveliest port cities of the Ottoman Empire, having a strong Greek cultural life.

Theophilos worked as a doorman at the Greek Consulate here.

But his true passion is painting.

He painted on every wall, every piece of wood, and every scrap of cardboard he could find.

After a while, he started living in the city of Volos in Greece. He made a living by painting on the walls of village houses, shops, and inns.

Paintings Done for a Plate of Food

During his lifetime, Theophilos was not seen as a great artist.

Rather, many saw him as an odd person.

Because he wore the traditional Greek garment called fustanella every day.

He stuttered.

And spent hours painting alone.

Most of the time, he painted on the walls of a café and received just a plate of food in return.

But the stories he told on those walls were grand:

• Heroes of the Greek War of Independence
• Alexander the Great
• Ancient Greek legends
• folk tales
• village life

It is said that the walls of the old café in Karini were once filled with these paintings.

That Tree in Karini

The most sought-after sight by visitors coming to Karini is still that plane tree.

There is a large hollow in the trunk of the tree. When you enter, light seeps in through a narrow opening from the outside.

After standing inside for a few seconds, one really experiences a different feeling.

As if a painter had just sat here…

As if the sound of the stream had accompanied his brush strokes…

Is it real?

Perhaps we can never know for sure.

But everyone who comes to Karini feels the same thing:

There is a story in this tree.

Tériade and Late Fame

Theophilos never achieves great fame during his life.

Until the famous art critic born in Lesbos, Stratis Eleftheriadis Tériade discovers him.

Living in Paris, Tériade realizes that he is facing a great talent when he sees Theophilos’s paintings. He provides him with canvases and paints, and orders new works.

Theophilos quickly produces over a hundred paintings.

But fate plays a cruel game.

The painter passes away in 1934, just before his fame spreads worldwide.

Later, his works are exhibited in Europe, and Theophilos is considered one of the most important representatives of Greek folk art.

Today in Karini Valley

Today, visitors coming to Karini:

• walk along the riverbank
• see the remnants of the old water mills
• eat in a tavern
• visit the Theophilos tree.

While wandering in the valley, one notices one thing:

Here, nature, history, and art are intertwined.

Perhaps this is why Karini is seen as one of the most romantic and mysterious places in Lesbos.

Lesbos’s Hidden Story

The beaches of Petra, the stone streets of Molivos, and the port of Mytilene are the face of Lesbos.

But Karini Valley…

is the soul of Lesbos.

When you pause for a moment to look at that plane tree while walking by the river, you cannot help but think:

Perhaps once, a young painter coming from İzmir really stopped here.

And in the silence of this valley, he left a story on the walls.