When I get an idea, I often have to put it down on paper so it doesn't disappear. I've had this image of a solitary goldfish in my head for days and left the sea of blue that I was working on to do the start of a little study in preparation for a large piece to come.
The term nishikigoi in Japanese means "colored carp" and refers to the magical realm of koi fish. The Japanese invest symbolism in many animals and especially koi carp, the common goldfish being the domestic version of carp. Yamabuki: The gold fish represents gold, wealth and prosperity.
This is on 6 x 12 gallery canvas in acrylics. Its just the bones of it right now but will have more form and depth over the next few days and I'll see what comes of it.
11 comments:
I really like the minimalism of this Jeanette - please don't lose that
I was just about to say I loved the fresh simplicity of this and then saw Vivien was thinking along exactly the same lines. :)
Its exactly what I was going for Vivien and Julie. There will be a pale colour in the water and the fish enhanced. Other than that it remains the same.
This is already exceptional! The fish looks incredibly real and I love the surface bubbles!
It's interesting that you have paited the fish before the water - I would have assumed that it would be done the other way around. I can't wait to see how it turns out!
Thanks Sandra. I do things backwards sometimes :) I simply felt like painting the fish first to see how it would look, then worry about the background later. With a small canvas like this, its easy to work around the fish for the background.
Hi, Jeanette - I love the simplicity of the concept - love it as it is , in fact!
I can't add much to the other comments as I agree with them all. Sometimes less IS more.
Susan, often simple concepts are the best aren't they? I want to keep the fish as the focal point and keep the rest very muted.
Yes, very true Billie. And often I tend to over complicate and fuss with paintings instead of leaving the initial gut reaction strokes which work best.
Jeanette - I absolutely love this little painting. The simplicity of it really makes it shine - perfect composition.
Hi, Jeanette
Wow...your work has amazed me so much!
Brilliant drawing skills based on a traditional style with wonderful orthodox skills. And one more, the title, "Yamabuki" makes me think of a colour, golden yellow in Japanese, but also it implies gold & money.(*I'm a Japanese speaker.) Thank you for the work!
Kind regards,Sadami
Diahn, thank you. Having minimal distraction really allows the viewer to focus on the fish.
Sadami, thanks so much for your kind words. Its great that this little painting says so much to so many. And I'm glad I got the right Japanese translation! :)
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