Unbeknownst to the 19th-century Greek "primitive" painter Theofilos, other painters around the world at the time were also exploring non-academic subjects, focusing on the everyday lives of ordinary persons. In the U.S., the group of painters who chose such subjects were dubbed "the Ashcan school." Though Theofilos remained unknown in his lifetime, this biographical drama explores the painter's life from his birth on the Isle of Lesbos (Lesvos) in 1868 to the time when he developed his characteristic style, following his discharge from the Greek army.