Let's open a seedy-looking sailor pub (even though we're not anywhere near a port). Let's decorate it with shark jaws, and fishing nets (the old ones made of hemp, not plastic), and hang a huge wooden rudder wheel on the wall. Maybe we can include some port holes on the bathroom doors, and a rusty anchor hung up above the bar. And around the entrance we can paint some mermaids and krakens...
A Dime in a Dozen ... Until ...
I'm sure all of us have seen these kinds of maritime dive bars. It's almost cliche, how easy it is to drag together the components, and make it look almost authentic. And once you have everything in place, you can call it something like "The Siren's Song" or maybe the just The Sharkfin Bar. That's kind of what I expected too, when I walked past this bar in the Paul Robeson Straße in Berlin, which I believe is still part of the Prenzlauer Berg district. But then I realized that one thing did not quite fit the profile.
A Fish to be Reckoned With
The bar (which in the end turned out to be a tattoo parlor) was not named after sharks or cuttlefish, or any of your more typical sea creatures, but after a fish. Though only those who know about it will recognize the amazing qualities of this powerful type of fish, given such a major importance in Cascadian culture: One that masters not only ocean currents, but swims up immense rivers, jumps up waterfalls, to find its way to the headwaters where it hatched, so it can lay its row there too. The name of the place Der Lachs should already call to mind the word for its meat in English lox, which of course is none other than the salmon.
Powerful Imagery
As mighty as the fish, so is also its representation of this business, which obviously prides itself on creating strong visuals. So while people who appreciate nice body art may want to wear a mermaid or a clipper ship on their bodies, it is quite appropriate that they would get it from a shop named after such an awesome fish. Of course, for my own purpose of presenting impressive wall paintings, this tattoo salon looks quite perfect as well. Maybe you might wanna visit the Lachs if you're planing to get an original Berlin tat! I believe the artist behind this mural is also the tattoo master at this place. It would only make sense.
As always, this post is my entry for this week's CCC's Street Art Contest #140, which by now has gotten quite huge. So follow the link to find mind-blowing examples of street art from around the world. To see more of the murals I collected in Berlin, check out my Walls of Berlin series.