Learn Hardcore Greek: Στη γκαλερί βλέπουμε συχνά σύγχρονη τέχνη από νέους καλλιτέχνες. - In the gallery we often see contemporary art by young artists.

The ν at the end (στην) is often dropped before many consonants in modern usage, so στη γκαλερί is perfectly normal. You might also see στην γκαλερί, but στη is more common in everyday writing before a consonant like γ.

Why is γκαλερί feminine and why doesn’t it change form?

Γκαλερί is a loanword (from French galerie), and many modern loanwords in Greek are:

Indeclinable (they keep the same form in all cases), and
Often treated as feminine, especially if they end in a stressed -ί sound.

So:

η γκαλερί – the gallery (nominative)
στη γκαλερί – in/at the gallery (accusative)

The word γκαλερί itself does not change; only the article η/τη(ν) shows the case and gender.

What does σε mean here? Is it “in”, “at”, or “to” the gallery?

Greek σε is a very flexible preposition. Depending on context, it can often correspond to:

in (location inside): στη γκαλερί = in the gallery
at (location in a place): στη γκαλερί = at the gallery
to (movement toward): πηγαίνουμε στη γκαλερί = we go to the gallery

In this sentence, Στη γκαλερί βλέπουμε…, it describes where you see the art, so “in/at the gallery” is the right idea.

Why don’t we need the pronoun εμείς (“we”) before βλέπουμε?

In Greek, the verb ending usually makes the subject clear, so subject pronouns are often omitted.

βλέπουμε ends in -ουμε, which clearly marks 1st person plural → “we”.

You can say Εμείς βλέπουμε συχνά… for emphasis (like “We, on our part, often see…”), but normally εμείς is left out because it’s not necessary for understanding.

Does βλέπουμε here mean “we see” or “we are seeing”? How does Greek express that difference?

Greek present tense (βλέπουμε) can cover both English:

we see (habitual, general)
we are seeing (right now)

The context and adverbs show the nuance. Here we have συχνά (often), so the meaning is habitual:

Βλέπουμε συχνά… = We often see…

If you wanted to stress “right now” in Greek, you’d use context or an adverb like τώρα:

Τώρα βλέπουμε σύγχρονη τέχνη… = Now we’re seeing contemporary art…

What is the difference between συχνά and συχνός?

συχνά is an adverb = “often”, “frequently”.
- βλέπουμε συχνά = “we often see”
συχνός, -ή, -ό is an adjective = “frequent”.
- συχνές εκθέσεις = frequent exhibitions
- συχνή επίσκεψη = frequent visit

In this sentence, you need an adverb modifying the verb βλέπουμε, so συχνά is the correct form.

Where can the adverb συχνά go in the sentence? Is the word order flexible?

Yes, Greek word order is fairly flexible, especially for adverbs like συχνά. All of these are possible:

Στη γκαλερί βλέπουμε συχνά σύγχρονη τέχνη…
Στη γκαλερί συχνά βλέπουμε σύγχρονη τέχνη…
Συχνά στη γκαλερί βλέπουμε σύγχρονη τέχνη…

They all mean essentially the same thing: “We often see contemporary art at the gallery.”

The differences are mostly in rhythm and subtle emphasis, not in basic meaning.

What exactly does σύγχρονη mean? Is it “modern” or “contemporary”?

Σύγχρονη literally means “of the same time, of our time” and is usually translated as:

contemporary, or
modern (in the sense of modern/contemporary art)

In the phrase σύγχρονη τέχνη it corresponds very well to English “contemporary art” (art from the current or recent period, not classical or old masters).

Why is σύγχρονη τέχνη singular, not plural, when in English we just say “art” as an uncountable noun?

In Greek, τέχνη is a countable, feminine noun:

η τέχνη – the art
οι τέχνες – the arts

The phrase σύγχρονη τέχνη is used in Greek much like “contemporary art” in English: it refers to the field or kind of art in general, even though grammatically it’s singular.

So:

σύγχρονη τέχνη = contemporary art (as a category), not “a single artwork”.

Why is it από νέους καλλιτέχνες and not some other case after από?

The preposition από (“from”, and often “by” in passive/creative contexts) in modern Greek normally takes the accusative case.

So:

από
- νέος καλλιτέχνης (dictionary form)
becomes από νέους καλλιτέχνες (accusative plural)

Pattern:

ο νέος καλλιτέχνης – the young artist (nom. sing.)
τους νέους καλλιτέχνες – the young artists (acc. pl.)
από νέους καλλιτέχνες – from/by young artists (acc. pl., no article)

Does από νέους καλλιτέχνες mean “by young artists” or “from young artists”?

Literally, από means “from”, but in contexts of creation (books, paintings, music, etc.), από is also used where English uses “by”:

πίνακας από τον Πικάσο = a painting by Picasso
βιβλίο από μια Ελληνίδα συγγραφέα = a book by a Greek (female) writer

So here:

σύγχρονη τέχνη από νέους καλλιτέχνες = contemporary art by young artists.

What is the grammatical form of νέους in νέους καλλιτέχνες?

Νέους here is:

Adjective: from νέος, -α, -ο (young)
Case: accusative
Number: plural
Gender: masculine (agreeing with καλλιτέχνες)

It agrees with καλλιτέχνες in gender, number, and case:

νέους (masc. acc. pl.) + καλλιτέχνες (masc. acc. pl.)

Is καλλιτέχνες only masculine? What if the artists are women?

The base noun is:

ο καλλιτέχνης – (male) artist
Plural: οι καλλιτέχνες

In practice:

οι καλλιτέχνες can refer to a mixed group or an unspecified group of artists (like “artists” in general).
For explicitly female artists, some people use:
- η καλλιτέχνις (more formal/literary)
  or
- η καλλιτέχνης (same form as masculine, but with feminine article)

In this sentence, νέους καλλιτέχνες naturally reads as “young artists” without specifying gender; it could be all male, all female, or mixed.

Could the sentence use a different word order, like Συχνά βλέπουμε στη γκαλερί σύγχρονη τέχνη από νέους καλλιτέχνες?

Yes. That sentence is also completely correct:

Συχνά βλέπουμε στη γκαλερί σύγχρονη τέχνη από νέους καλλιτέχνες.

It still means: “We often see contemporary art by young artists at the gallery.”

Greek allows you to move elements like συχνά or στη γκαλερί for emphasis and flow. The core grammar (articles, cases, verb form) remains the same.