Cats of the Sun
First and foremost, I must speak of the Greeks, and especially of the people of the Cyclades. They appear only rarely in my photographs, yet without them these cats could not survive. The climate allows the islanders to spend much of their lives outdoors. The cats share in this typically Mediterranean way of life.
Greeks do not allow animals inside their homes, with the exception of canaries. These cats, which are domestic animals, are neither abandoned nor wild. For centuries, they have shared the lives of human beings.
The Greeks of these islands love them without truly loving them. They care for them without truly caring for them—yet they accept them completely. These cats are part of everyday life. They have always been there, like the wind, the sun, the sea, the day and the night.
Some forms of beauty lie beyond words. Cats belong to that realm.
Hans Silvester
