Without hesitation, Igor Borisov names his favorite Greek word. “Thalassa.” For the internationally renowned French photographer and painter, it captures far more than a landscape – it encapsulates the soul of his creative world.

The sea isn’t merely a source of inspiration for Borisov; it’s one of the reasons he chose to make Kimolos his home. When we connect via Zoom, he’s seated in the whitewashed kitchen of the island’s oldest house, in the small southeastern village of Psathi. “It was essential for me to live in an authentic, traditional Cycladic home. My dream came true,” he says.

With over thirty years of experience in children’s fashion – working with major houses like Giorgio Armani and Burberry and featured in magazines such as Vogue Bambini – Borisov began his career in Paris. But his fascination with Greece began much earlier. “I was just a boy when I fell under the spell of mythology: Odysseus, Troy, Achilles, Agamemnon… the Spartans at Thermopylae. Those stories left a lasting mark.”

He was just 24 when he decided to discover Greece for himself. Unfolding a map, he placed his finger on a tiny island next to Polyaigos. That was it. “I landed in Milos and headed to the fishing village of Pollonia,” Borisov recalls. “There was a small blue fishing boat in the harbor, with a man sitting alone inside. He looked like a pirate. There was no one else around. My partner and I climbed aboard, and the three of us crossed to Psathi.”

It was a sweltering August afternoon in the mid-1980s when he first set foot on Kimolos. The heat was nearly unbearable, but it couldn’t dim the island’s charm. What struck him was the pristine cleanliness of the small community and the kindness of its few inhabitants.

That alone, he says, made everything worthwhile. He wandered on foot for hours, eventually maκing his way back to the sea. That’s when he stumbled upon a secluded bay, “a turquoise pool surrounded by white rocks and fishermen,” he remembers. There, he met the family of one of the local fishermen. And something clicked. “They became my family. I felt as though they had adopted me. That day, I fell in love with this place. And I kept going back to that little village every year,” he says. 

Even as his career took him across the globe, Borisov’s thoughts kept circling back to Kimolos. No matter where in the world he was, something always tethered him to the island. “I kept thinking – one day, I’ll live in Kimolos. Being here feels like stepping into another life. It’s madness – but the good kind,” he says with a smile.

In those early years, he stayed in a modest house with no electricity or running water. His children were still young then, and the whole family would sleep out on the rooftop, under the stars. “It felt like being in a boat, adrift in the middle of the sea. We’d watch shooting stars and play games, like who would spot the next one first,” he recalls. Over time, Borisov carved out a true sanctuary on the island.

His warm, generous spirit quickly won the hearts of the locals. Today, after nearly four decades, the people of Kimolos consider him one of their own. In 2004, he created honored the village by capturing portraits of nearly every resident, many of which still grace the walls of one of the island’s most beloved tavernas.

Kimolos also awakened his passion for painting. It started with the terrace of his home, then the stairs, the courtyard, and finally the footpath to his door. Each brushstroke was a way to brighten the space – for himself, and for the village children who played there.

Over the years, his murals began to blossom across the island, on steps, walls, courtyards, and facades. Soon, locals started inviting him to paint their own homes, each mural an expression of his unique vision of Greece. Borisov describes his work as a bridge between ancient and modern Greece.

“Greece inspires me in a pure, elemental way – from the sea and the ocean floor to the mythical creatures of legend. These themes often appear in my paintings. An octopus, for instance, isn’t just an octopus – it’s a mythical figure of sorts,” he explains. Color, too, plays a vital role in his compositions. “It begins with the gray and white of the Cyclades, and evolves into deep blues and vibrant reds.”

Following numerous exhibitions in Greece and abroad, Borisov continues to draw inspiration from the raw beauty of the Greek landscape, from meaningful encounters, and from the quiet poetry of island life. “Painting for me is like writing a letter,” he says. “It comes from within – something instinctive and effortless. Only at the end do I realize what I’ve created.”