The Polygnotos Vagis was born in Potamia of Thasos in 1894. He emigrated to New York in 1911 at the age of 19 and after obtaining American citizenship, due to his recruiting at the American Nany during the First World War, he studied at the Institute of Fine arts. He maintained his atelier in New York for decades dealing with painting and sculpting.
His first journey back to Greece was one year before his death when he inherited his pieces of art to the Greek State provided that they would be exhibited in the national museum or in a new-established library on the island of Thasos.
Thus, many of his works, particularly the early period, are permanently exhibited in the museum in Potamia. The museum of Polygnotos Vagis was inaugurated in 1981, while it is located in a traditional two-store stone building that used to house the elementary school of the village.
The displayed artifacts are 98 sculptures and 15 paintings. The projects are divided into two distinct periods, "the early years", which was inspired more from ancient Greece, mythology and history and in the second period when the projects are characterized mostly by abstraction. While, the materials used by the artist was mainly copper, cement, marble, granite, stone, and wood.