Painting | Flying Goldfish and the Rebet Cat

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Flying Goldfish and the Rebet Cat

Posca and Molotow markers on wooden surface, approx. 50x200cm (each piece)

This mural - painting was created for a restaurant - bar called ''Ennoia sou'' (Έννοια σου) in the island of Syros, Greece. The owner assigned me this project and trusted me to work without any restrictions. The only thing he requested was for the painting to look as if it was done with chalk, although permanent.

I came up with the idea of a Rebet Cat holding a greek instrument called tzouras (τζουράς) in a kind of tropical scenery. A Rebet (Ρεμπέτης) is someone that plays Rebetiko music (aka the Greek Blues). Syros is a place filled with cats and it is also the birthplace of Markos Vamvakaris, the "godfather" of Rebetiko. It seemed suitable because the restaurant used to held a lot of live gigs at the time. I also thought of painting some greenery because the restaurant had no real plants inside. Lastly, I painted a big cup of coffee and a large glass of wine and amongst them, a goldfish floating in that mini jungle.

I used only Posca and Molotow markers and tried to mimic a '"chalk effect'" by gently tapping the paint with a sponge or a cloth before it got dry. I also used a small wood carved as the Rebet Cat's paw to achieve a three - dimensional feeling.