At Vlychada beach on Santorini, next to the impressive volcanic rock formations, stands the
D. Nomikos tomato factory, with its smokestack standing out in the eerie, almost lunar
landscape. The factory is here to tell stories about the island, its people, and the passage of
time and memory.
In 2014, at the old factory in Vlychada, a wonderful example of cycladic architecture, the
newly renovated kai conserved building opened its doors to the public as the “D. Nomikos”
Tomato Industrial Museum, next to the newly formed Santorini Arts Factory.
The museum operates on 3 separate axis:
● History and tradition
● Culture
● Education
Dimitris Nomikos started production of tomato pulp at the pre-industrial technology factory of Messaria in 1915. In 1922, he commissions one of the first modern canning factories in the
Balkans at Monolithos, with cutting edge technology for the times, imported from abroad. In
1945, George Nomikos, son of Dimitris, commissions the factory at Vlychada, at the centre
of the most productive area for tomatoes. Simultaneously, a packaging center is built inside
the factory, that produces the packaging and boxes during the winter period. In 1956 the
factory survived unscathed the big earthquake, and D. Nomikos expanded its operations to
the island of Kos.
In 1971, the now société anonyme (S.A) company started its first exports, and D.Nomikos
expands further to northern Greece, at Aliartos in Boeotia. In 1981, at the point that
agriculture was no longer profitable on Santorini due to tourism increasing so fast, the
factory stops its operation, while a new factory is opened at Domokos in Phthiotis the same
year. The Domokos factory together with the one in Aliartos can now process the same
amount processed in Vlychada for an entire agricultural season, in 12 hours.
The Museum offers a wonderful trip to the past, following and recording step by step the
evolution of the production, processing, and cultivation of tomatoes. Visitors can explore a
different era of industrial history, and can come into contact with traditional methods used by
tomato workers and farmers in Santorini. They can learn about gastronomy and agriculture
in the region through special programmes, and learn more about the history of the island, the
inhabitants, their living conditions, their work and their customs and traditions. The Museum
is a specialized example of an industrial factory, with exhibits dating from the 1890s: tools
and machinery, archive material from 1915, old handwritten ledgers from the factory, labels
and packaging materials, as well as rich audio-visual material of testimonials of workers of
the factory. These are the contents of the permanent exhibition of the museum, which also
includes a support framework for greek and foreign scholars and scientists , granting
immediate access and use to the rare and original archives of the factory, referencing preindustrial technologies and practices, and the transition to modern industrial production.
Furthermore, the archive offers a plethora of information on the social and economic fabric of
Santorini for a period that lasted over 100 years.
Tomato Industrial Museum:
● The Tomato Industrial Museum has been a member of ICOMOS since 2015
● 2015 Awarded Praise by the Greek Illustration and Graphics Awards (EBGE), for the
museum logo under the category “Visual Identity”, in a group of 192 contestants
● 2015 Participation and Presentation of the Museum at the 17th Meeting for Greek
Cultural Heritage in Athens
● 2016 Participation and Presentation of the Museum in a Museology Meeting of the
University of Macedonia in Thessaloniki
● 2016 Participation and Presentation of the Museum in a Meeting of the European
Museum Academy (E.M.A) in Lesvos
● 2017 Introduced to the list of contestants for the European Museum Academy
Awards (E.M.A)
● 2018 Participation in the Industrial Gas Museum exhibition “160 years Made in
Greece: Industry and Innovation”
The Santorini Arts Factory is an inseparable and vital part of the Tomato Industrial Museum,
it’s a non-profit organization that aims to promote Greek cultural heritage to an international
audience.
There are exhibits of both performance and visual art, in cooperation with stakeholders such
as the Karolos Koun Arts Theatre, the National Theatre of Northern Greece, and the Greek
Theatre of New York. Productions of music, theatre, dance, sculpture, video art, and visual
art installations, compose a unique cultural landscape, inspired by the modern world, and the
major art movements. A number of publications in the greek and international print-media
has praised the “Culture Volcano”, as the work of the Arts Factory has been dubbed. The
European Institution E.F.F.E has honored SAF (2016-2017-2018) for its quality, social
responsibility, and extroversion.
The Arts Factory wants to be a place of culture, open to everyone. We aim to stay informed
in the ever-growing field of educational activities, and expand the ones that we offer, since
we believe that experiencing art and culture is a right we all have. Our efforts to constantly
enrich and update the events that we organize, has lead to the creation of workshop
seminars for children and adults. This way children have the opportunity to come into contact
with their creative side, in an experiential way designed to cater to their needs. Through
these meetings children can develop their creativity and imagination, to enrich their
vocabulary and ability to narrate, to strengthen their memory, concentration and confidence,
and to become interest in tradition and culture. Culture has rejuvenated the classical learning
process, and introduces new material, new approaches, and new activities, making students
more active, curious, and prone to learning. An art education strengthens the ability to express one’s self, the development of personality and personal characteristics, and
responds to today’s demand for a more holistic educational experience.
Working closely with educators, societies, schools, educational organisations such as the
Museum of Cycladic Art, to Children’s Museum in Athens, the Onassis Cultural Centre, we
have organised:
● 18 visual art workshops
● 7 dance seminars
● 6 children’s photography seminars
● 7 polyphonic singing workshops for adults
● 12 musical seminars gia primary school students
● 2 weekly seminars for musical composition
● 10 seminars of traditional cottage industry
● 5 musical workshops for children with special needs
● Permanent exhibitions of the items of the Cycladic Museum “Cycladic Civilisation”
and “Ceramic”
The teaching staff come from Athens exclusively for our workshops and seminars. They are
qualified professionals with years of experience in their respective fields.
In the premises of the Tomato Industrial Museum there is also a gift shop and a cafe.
The gift shop draws its inspiration from the industrial origins of the museum, and promotes
the work of greek designers and artists that combine functionality and originality to redefine
the essence of Santorini and Greece. Visitors can choose from a large collection of elegant
but functional decorative items and cult memorabilia that combine the traditional with the
contemporary in interesting ways.
The museum cafe is the perfect place to take a break; filled with aromas of tomatoes, visitors
can have cooking lessons and tastings of tomato pulp and products.
With the belief that culture is an inseparable part of a society that flourishes on every level,
the Tomato Industrial Museum and the Santorini Arts Factory make up a lively cultural
organisation, that is constantly evolving, outward-looking, open to suggestions, partnerships,
and collaborations.
Having as our main priority our local community and its members, but also the history, both
ancient and modern, of Thira and Thirasia, we actively invest in culture, education, and
tradition. At the same time, we reinforce the promotion of our island and its products (both
material and cultural) to the thousands of visitors that it welcomes each year. Our vision is
not limited to summer activities, but is year-round, strengthening the material and cultural
goods of our island.