Marlin (2019) SMOK
There is a houseboat in the Leuvehaven, which was painted in 2015 with a bright pink octopus, because owner Hans is an avid diver. However, the painting needed to be replaced after four years, so Hans again offered his houseboat to be painted. So he sailed his boat to the Rijnhaven, where during the PowWow! festival 2019 a new painting was applied by the Antwerp street artist SMOK. The houseboat is stocked with marlins, a large species of fish with a spear-shaped snout and a dorsal fin. To the left and right of the boat you see the marlins, in the middle a number of smaller fish, so that the work gets depth. The light, which is refracted by the water, has also been very cleverly applied by SMOK. The boat bears the name Star Marlin, after the daughter of Hans and hence the choice for this fish species. A week after the festival, Hans sailed back to his regular berth in the Leuvehaven.
SMOK is the stage name of street artist Belgian Bart Boudewijns (1972). He lives and works in Antwerp. His paintings can be seen in the streets of Belgium, California, Portugal and France, among other places. SMOK gets inspiration from daily situations and animals. They form a subtle metaphor to criticize human behavior.
Wijnkade 2, 3011 VZ Rotterdam, Netherlands