.................................................   STREETS OF VILNIUS   DOORS OF CRETE   SIGNS OF NEW YORK   LOGOS & POSTERS   .................................................   ABOUT DALIUS   CONTACT     .................................................       DOORS OF CRETE / ΠΟΡΤΕΣ ΤΣΗ ΚΡΗΤΗΣ The original works of art by Dalius Regelskis highlight hundred-year-old Cretan doors inspired by the amazing beauty of the sunny Greek island of Crete. All these drawings are made with ink and watercolor. However, instead of using traditional tools like dip pen or ink marker, Dalius prefers to draw with dry twigs cut by himself. The mantinades* used in the drawings were written by Manolis Maragoudakis (age 64) from the tiny village of Vederi, Rethymno, Crete, exclusively for these works. The English translation of them is given under each drawing. Dalius and Manolis became very close friends and their friendship grew into this unique artwork collaboration. The demand for these works of art started in Vilnius, Lithuania at the annual exhibition Menas Namams (Art for Homes), where Dalius was invited to exhibit the drawings at the Domus Gallery. When more than half of originals were sold at the opening, DaliusArt shop was then established on Etsy.com and these Cretan doors, printed in different sizes, started "traveling" all over the world. In the very first year, the project became so successful that it gained a great reputation in the international media. Attention first appeared on the online gallery Graphic Art News, a highly regarded gallery in which only high-quality designs, illustrations, and art appear. Other notable media hits were the Australian Greek bloggers We Love Crete, Lithuanian art & culture magazine Nemunas, and even three Greek daily newspapers on Crete namely, Ρεθεμνιώτικα Νέα (Rethemniotika Nea), Χανιώτικα Νέα (Haniotika Nea), and DayNight.gr   .....................................................   * The Cretan mantinades are 15-syllable rhyming couplets in the Cretan dialect of Greek. That's the unique way in which locals in Crete express their emotions of sorrow, joy, hope, desire, love, anger, revenge and nostalgia. According to historians, mantinades first appeared on the island of Crete in the 15th century, during the period of Venetian rule. Similar rhyming couplets are found on other Greek islands; however, the difference in Crete is that this very old tradition is still alive today, especially in the villages.     CRETAN DOOR #18, 2016 "The door of the heart, why is it kept locked? In my heart's door I always leave the keys for those who want to come in!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #17, 2016 "Sensitive hearts beat louder because their love is true love, their pain is true pain!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #16, 2016 "I have opened the door to joy, the gate to hope, and I was transported into Paradise with just one glimpse of you!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #15, 2016 "Passing in front of your house, feeling bitter, because you don't open your door and I wonder how long can I suffer?" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #14, 2016 "If you don't open when I knock at your door, you will not see me again, even if my heart breaks like an atzouri!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #13, 2016 Collection of different Cretan doors from Chania, Margarites, Meronas and Rethymno. Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #12, 2016 "The first caressings of God in my life touched my soul in a small chapel of my mountain village." Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #11, 2016 "Make sure you keep your door well locked, just to befool your father, but leave your window open for me!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #10, 2016 "I want to marry a girl in Adele, a village of such nice people, hoping that I will be given olive groves as a wedding gift!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #09, 2016 "This green door of yours, my white dove, I keep looking at as I pass up and down, as long as the sun is shining." Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #08, 2016 "Oh, poor door! You have not been opened for half a century now, but Dalius saw you and made an icon out of you!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #07, 2016 "Is it the red color of your door or rather that of your cheeks, which makes me blush when I come to see you?" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #06, 2016 Collection of different Cretan doors from Chania, Prines, Roustika and Rethymno. Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #05, 2016 "I found the courage to grasp your doorknob, yet I hesitating, standing shyly like a child." Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #04, 2016 "The door remains closed, your chair is empty... And now, whom can I sing with, at our neighbor's every evening?" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #03, 2016 "Like a small child, I will stop for a koulouri and if you happen to pass by, I might offer one to you as well!" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 AVAILABLE     CRETAN DOOR #02, 2016 "Who was that master, that great wood carver, that passionate artisan, who created these doors on the island of Crete?" Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD     CRETAN DOOR #01, 2016 Collection of different Cretan doors from Prines, Chania, Vederi and Rethymno. Ink and watercolor on paper Drawing size: 40x70 cm €340 SOLD