Iordanis Poimenidis | From Ancient Sites to Metal Art in Pieria

With the Locals · Katerini & Pieria · September 2025

Some people collect old things.

Some people repair them.

And some look at a rusted agricultural tool, a forgotten machine or an old piece of metal and see something that does not exist yet.

Iordanis Poimenidis belongs to the third group.

We met him in Pieria while following a trail that moved from Katerini’s flea markets to an archaeological site and finally into his workshop, where old metal objects become birds, fish and other handmade sculptures.

His story is about more than metal.

It is about memory, craftsmanship, reuse and the relationship between the past and the things we create today.

The Search Begins at the Paliatzidika

Before there is a sculpture, there is usually a search.

Iordanis regularly visits the paliatzidika — the flea and second-hand shops where old tools, machines and household objects find their way after their original usefulness has ended.

For most people, these objects might look like scrap.

For him, they are possibilities.

A small iron component can become part of a bird. An agricultural tool can become the body of a sculpture. An old machine can suggest the shape of something completely different.

He knows that every object has already lived one life.

The creative challenge is to imagine its next one.

When Scrap Becomes Sculpture

Inside the workshop, the atmosphere changes.

The quiet search of the flea markets gives way to grinding, filing, soldering and sparks.

Pieces of reclaimed metal begin to find their place.

There is something satisfying about watching this process because the finished object does not completely erase its previous life.

You can still see the history of the material.

The scratches, bends, rust and imperfections become part of the sculpture rather than something to hide.

From Useful Objects to Art

Iordanis remembers a turning point in 2006.

On his way back from his work at the archaeological service, he noticed a banner advertising a sculpture symposium. He went to see what was happening and encountered something that changed the direction of his own making.

He saw a work by Theodoros Papagiannis and Vrittias made from recycled materials.

Until then, Iordanis had mainly made useful objects such as clocks, candle holders and hangers.

After that encounter, his work began moving towards sculpture.

Iordanis Poimenidis: “I was making useful things — clocks, candle holders, hangers. I saw their work and I wanted to learn. From then on, an artistic mutation began. I make fish, birds, small idols that remind me of ancient Greece.”

That sentence explains something important about his work.

It did not begin as a carefully designed artistic career. It grew out of curiosity, observation and the desire to learn from what he had seen.

Working Between Archaeology and Creation

There is another unusual part of Iordanis’s story.

Alongside his creative work, he works for the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and is connected with the Korinos – Tumulus A archaeological site.

That places him close to archaeological heritage as part of his everyday working life.

His sculptures are not archaeological objects, of course. They are contemporary creations.

But the proximity to ancient sites, objects and local history forms an interesting backdrop to the way he thinks about materials, memory and the passage of time.

The Bird Before It Becomes a Bird

Perhaps the easiest way to understand his process is to look at the beginning.

Before the sculpture has a recognisable form, there are simply pieces spread across a table.

Metal fragments, old tools and mechanical parts wait to be combined.

Then something happens that is difficult to explain with instructions.

You begin to see the bird.

The material has not changed its history. The way we look at it has.

Old Machines, New Stories

This idea extends beyond sculpture.

During our visit, old electrical machines and agricultural tools became part of the visual vocabulary of the workshop.

They are reminders of another working landscape — one of mechanical tools, manual labour and objects designed to last.

In Iordanis’s hands, some of these objects receive another chance to be seen.

A Camera, a Typewriter & the Value of Passing Things On

The day was not only about metal.

In another corner of the workshop were objects that carried a different kind of memory: an old Zenit camera and a typewriter.

Iordanis gave the camera to Christos, a young chef who enjoys the mountains and the sea and also likes making things with his hands.

The gesture had an unexpected connection with family history: the camera was the same model Christos’s grandfather had once given him.

It felt less like receiving an old camera and more like receiving a small piece of a story that had travelled through generations.

We also bought a small old coal iron together, with the intention of restoring and testing it.

Sometimes the value of an old object is not its price.

It is the possibility of giving it another life.

Watch the Story

Our With the Locals film follows Iordanis through the flea markets, his workshop and the places that form part of his everyday world in Pieria.

A With the Locals story by Experience Pieria.

Can You Visit the Workshop?

Iordanis’s workshop is not presented here as a permanently scheduled tourist attraction.

For anyone interested in meeting local makers or exploring hands-on creative experiences in Pieria, arrangements should be made in advance rather than assuming that the workshop is open for drop-in visits.

This distinction matters.

The value of an experience like this comes from meeting a person in their own working environment, not from turning every workshop into a standard tourist stop.

Why Stories Like This Belong in Experience Pieria

There are many ways to discover Pieria.

You can walk Mount Olympus, swim in the Aegean, visit ancient Dion or explore its mountain villages.

But a destination is also made by the people who quietly create, repair, preserve and reinterpret things around them.

Iordanis represents that less obvious side of Pieria.

His story connects craft, reclaimed materials, archaeology and contemporary creativity without needing to turn any of them into a spectacle.

And perhaps that is the most interesting part: something old does not necessarily have to remain exactly as it was in order to retain its story.

Sometimes it becomes a bird.

Practical Notes

• Location: Pieria, Central Macedonia, Greece
• Experience type: Local craft, metal art, upcycling and storytelling
• Best for: Travellers interested in local makers, craftsmanship, photography, art and unusual cultural experiences
• Workshop visits: Arrange in advance rather than expecting open public access
• Nearby: Korinos, Katerini, the archaeological heritage of Pieria and the coast

Continue Exploring Pieria

There is more to Pieria than its most famous landscapes.

Meet local people, discover traditional crafts, explore archaeological sites, walk through mountain villages and find the everyday stories that give the region its character.

Explore Pieria at your own pace:
Explore Pieria