She studied sculpture from 1966 to 1972 at the Athens School of Fine Arts (ASFA), where her professors in sculpture were Thanasis Apartis, Yiannis Pappas, and Dimitris Kalamaras, and she studied set design under Vassilis Vassiliadis.[4] From 1975 to 1978, on a scholarship from EOMMEX (Hellenic Organization of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises and Handicrafts), she continued her studies at the École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris with instructors Marcel Gili (1914–1993) and César. She also attended courses in set design and costume design.[5] Her brother was the painter Thomas Papadoperakis (1943–2002).
Papadoperaki incorporates elements from the Archaic period of Greek sculpture, as well as features from Aegean folk architecture, into her work. She has presented her works in solo exhibitions and has participated in many group exhibitions in Greece and abroad. The most important ones include: the National Gallery (1979); “Ten Sculptors,” at the Goethe-Institut (1983) with an analysis of her sculpture of Maria Callas; Stavrakaki Gallery in Heraklion, Crete (1984), with the theme “The form of Cavafy”; the Sculptors’ Association with the theme “Elements in 20th-century art from the Treasury of the Siphnians”; the Basilica of Saint Mark, Heraklion, Crete (1986) “Woman in the Resistance”; the Sculptors’ Association with the theme “Human Figure” (1987); the National Youth Foundation (1992), with the theme “Analysis of a work.” She also took part in group exhibitions within the framework of Athens Cultural Capital of Europe and the AICA Congress (International Association of Art Critics), as well as the Salon de Mai in Paris and the Alexandria Biennale in 1980.
Papadoperaki created the full-body bronze sculpture of Maria Callas in Athens (Madrid Square, Vassilissis Alexandrou & Vrasida Ave., behind the Hilton Hotel). As Zetta Antonopoulou mentions, “it is one of the most beautiful contemporary sculptures in the city.” Among her other sculptural compositions are the busts of Nikos Xylouris and Nikos Kitsikis in Heraklion, Crete, and of Constantine Cavafy in Alexandria, Egypt. Her monumental sculptures include: “Electra Apostolou, National Resistance Monument 41–44” (1998, Cultural Center of the Municipality of Heraklion, Crete); “Aegean Meeting” (2006, Creta Maris Hotel, Hersonissos, Crete); Statue of Philip II (Athens, Cyprus–Papagou Ave.). Also, the sculptural composition “Timeless Meeting of Theotokopoulos, Kornaros, Kazantzakis” and others.
Papadoperaki has collaborated in the theater with names such as Yiannis Tsarouchis, V. Nikolaidis, Y. Hatzidakis, and Th. Kittou[5], and has created sets, masks, and costumes for theatrical performances. In 2002, her book “Studying Theotokopoulos” was published by the Benaki Museum in Greek and English. She is a member of the Sculptors’ Association. In 2009, Papadoperaki was honored by the Academy of Athens for her overall artistic body of work.
