Illustration Friday: Theory

Thinking about Fish 8"X10" acrylic on canvas

Fish

From the archives. I haven't printed my fish design for a number of years, but I 'm thinking of bringing it back. For the original I made a hand cut stencil and then printed the design onto paper using an inked up plastic bag to give it an interesting texture.

I was inspired by the works of M.C. Escher and the play between positive and negative images. Several years after making the design, a customer drew my attention to a great children's book called Swimmy (1963 Caldecott honor book), by Leo Lionni. In the story many small red fish swim together in the shape of one big fish. Together, they chase away the big fish that threaten them.