Yen-Cheng from Taiwan made a small art project in the kafeneon. He offered to give away free portraits to anybody who wanted one. The locals being a bit shy were hesitant to sit for one but we had enough takers to keep Yen-Cheng busy for a few hours. It was something new and fun. Many of the locals kept sending us small carafe's of raki which left us with blurry heads the next morning.
0 Comments
Eleni who is a local is happy to cook lunch for artists who stay in the village apartment. She charges a small fee and normally makes so much food that the leftovers are good for dinner as well. Here she is cooking for our Taiwanese artists. Fang Yu the wife wanted to watch her cook to get some tip.
Often the city residency artists want to come up to see the village to decide if they would like a second residency there. They always do. This time I had two Taiwanese artists and one German. The Taiwanese will return in a couple of weeks to stay in the village apartment.
Olivia from Singapore came to stay in the village apartment for three weeks this March. With her was Kinjal Johri a screen writer. While Kinjal spent her time writing in the apartment or at Oscar kafeneon down the hill, Olivia painstakingly painted this lovely mural. After a week in the village their main impression was how lovely and giving the locals are. The mural is a reflection of their hospitality. It is painted across from the Historical Museum.
Lorien from New England, America came to work quietly on her paintings cherishing her time alone to create. On being asked if she would like to paint a mural she jumped at the chance. It's always tricky in the village to paint a mural that fits well into the surroundings but is also not too kitsch and remains contemporary art. Lorien met the challenge perfectly with her painting of a mother showing her child how to plant something. Plus other references to village life.
Not every artist leaves a mural. Claus came to paint the landscape. Here are some photos of the day we went to see him which ended up at the kafeneon for one too many rakis.
Lauren and her partner Jake came to stay in our lovely village during a Greek heatwave, luckily for them the village has a different climate to the coast and never get unbearably hot. Here are some works from Lauran about her mural. This is "a typical Cretan snail which creates a path along the wall carrying an "arrow of love". The path has as a motif a decorative outline from the most famous Minoan painting of Knosos, the mural with the Minotaur. " (The typical Crete snail is making a path across the wall carrying a ‘love dart’. The path has a pattern, a decorative border from the most famous Minoan painting of Knossos, the bull-leaping fresco). ![]() During their stay Mathew and a friend of his Karina, a Mexican singer who lives in Heraklion, went up to escape the heat with Lauren and Jake. They ended the day with mezes at another village down the road that has spectacular views and and much needed summer breeze. Breanne came to stay in the village wanting to make some small paintings.... After being inspired by the enormous local vultures she decided to make this marvelous mural.
|
AuthorMathew Halpin. Archives
May 2025
Categories |