“They’re all grown up!” – Creator of Iconic Penang Street Art Reunites With the M’sians Who Modelled for the Murals

Previously, we shared how the original artist of the iconic street art found around George Town, Penang, was back in Malaysia to restore the murals, as most of them were already faded.

Well, the original creator, Lithuanian street artist Ernest Zacharevic, is now hard at work to restore the iconic murals, and recently, he also managed to reunite with the Malaysians who some of the murals were modelled after.

Original artist of iconic Penang street art reunites with the Malaysians who 2 of the murals were modelled after

In case you didn’t know, two of the most popular street art murals were actually based on real-life Malaysians, which are the boy on the motorcycle and the little siblings riding on a bicycle.

As shared by Penang State Tourism and Creative Economy Committee Chairman Wong Hon Wai on his Facebook page, Zacharevic reunited with the three now-grown-up kids at the respective murals which they modelled for, some 12 years after they were created.

In one Facebook post, Wong shared a photo of himself with Zacharevic in front of the siblings riding a bicycle mural with the actual Malaysian siblings whom the street art was modelled after.

Meanwhile, in another post, Wong and Zacharevic also posed in front of the boy on a motorcycle mural with the now-grown-up boy that the mural was modelled after. The boy even sat on the motorcycle, making it seem like he was riding with his younger self in the photo.

According to China Press, the siblings riding on the bicycle are 17-year-old Chen Yi and her younger brother, 15-year-old Chen Ken. They were only 5 and 3 years old, respectively, when the mural was drawn.

Meanwhile, the boy on the motorcycle is 23-year-old Aiman, who was 11 years old when the mural was drawn.

What an incredible story! So, what do you guys think of Zacharevic’s reunion with the actual Malaysians who the famous Penang murals were modelled after? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

Also read: The Original Artist of the Iconic Penang Murals is Back in Malaysia to Restore Them!