Painter and engraver Giannis Papadakis was born in Agia Galini in 1934. He studied at the Athens School of Fine Arts (1954 – 1959) under professor Y. Moralis and engraving under Jean Kefalinos, E. Papadimitriou and K. Grammatopoulos. He travelled to France for educational purposes on a scholarship granted by the State Scholarships Foundation (I.K.Y.)  where he attended classes at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris and then in Italy (Milan and Florence).

In 1961, he started working at the Athens School of Fine Arts as curator in the workshops of Engraving, Artistic Typography and Art of the Book and in the Chair of Rhythmology and Perspective; he was elected professor at the 1^st Engraving Laboratory in 1991 and in 1997 rector at the Athens School of Fine Arts. He is a member of the Chamber of Fine Arts of Greece and a founding member of the Greek Printmakers’ Association; he also taught in various private schools in Athens, organized fine arts seminars and served a member of various arts committees and chairman of the Athens Municipality Arts Committee.

From 1960 onwards, he has held several solo exhibitions and taken part in many group exhibitions, such as the Pan-Hellenic exhibitions and several Biennales (Sao Paulo, Alexandria 1965, Tokyo 1966, Buenos Aires 1968 and 1970, Venice 1970, Florence 1972, Krakow 1974, Varna 1991, etc.). Giannis Papadakis has received awards for his work on more than one occasion.