Prodi

 

oil on panel, 10" x 10"

This is a portrait of my friend Ron's beloved border collie, who passed away in December not long after my own Lola died.  Prodi was Ron's first border collie, to be followed by many more.  He loves the breed.  Prodi was special, though.  He had a fondness for fish and befriended a yellow one in Ron's koi pond named Smokey.  I've painted Smokey before and suggested him here but this painting is all about Ron's beautiful boy.

Poisson Ange

oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Another little fish painting to add to my series of little fish paintings.  What can I say, they're fun!

Banggai Cardinalfish 2

 

oil on panel, 6" x 6"

Here's another little fish study to go with the one I did last week.  

Damsel in Distress

oil on panel, 8" x 8"

This little painting of a damselfish kinda captures how I feel right now, but I'm really happy with the colors.  Thought I'd jump in on the "ring" bandwagon while I'm at it.   I may tweak it later.

Swimmers

oil on zinc plate, 6" x 9"

Another fish study on metal, my favorite type of surface.

Butterfly Koi Study

 

oil on aluminum panel, 8" x 10"

Here's a quick little fish study, just trying to loosen up here and push some paint around.  This was painted in my new (old) art studio on the property where I live.  I'm excited to be in that bright space once again, having toughed it out the last 3+ years working under artificial light.  Updated 9.28.2022:  Made a few tweaks here and there.

Fish Nor Fowl

 

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Just a little abstract doodle.

Blue Angel

oil on panel, 6" x 6"

Study of an angelfish.

Coy Little Koi

 

oil on aluminum panel, 8" x 6"

Angelfish come in many stripes, and even some without, such as this little koi angelfish.  I love them all, but this one in particular was fun to paint!  

Smokey the Koi

oil on canvas board, 8" x 8"

Another fish study, this one of a "pet" koi fish dubbed Smokey, who lives in a beautiful pond at my friends' property near Mendocino, California.  My friends have a bunch of border collies as well, and one of them, a handsome dude named Prodi, actually has a relationship with Smokey.  They're friends!  They go nose to nose whenever they meet up.  It's quite something to witness, so this is a very special fish.  I may try and do a larger version of him (or her?) on panel some day, but for now, this'll have to do.

Snapper Study

oil on canvas board, 8" x 8"

Continuing with the fish theme, here's a study of a red snapper.

Trigger Happy

 

oil on panel, 6" x 6"

This quick little study of a colorful triggerfish was quite satisfying because it was something I could do within an hour.  I think he's happy, too.  Let's leave it at that.

Another World

 

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This is a study of a tropical scene that I am playing around with, hoping to adapt it to a larger composition.  Fish are fun to paint, so I'm betting I'll be painting more of them.

Fish n' Chips

acrylic on canvas, 16" x 20"

This is the abstract iteration of my previous posting, Fish.  To compare these two paintings is like comparing a raw whole fish with its cooked version:  very different in appearance, taste and aroma, but based on the same raw material.  

Fish

acrylic on canvas, 16" x 20"

This simple painting of a tropical fish was the first part of a two-part exercise at UNM.  The first part was to paint anything -- an object, still life, landscape, portrait, whatever -- in a representational manner, and the second part was to paint an abstract iteration of that first painting.  I will post my abstract interpretation of this one tomorrow.  Spoiler alert:  it looks nothing like this fish, but perhaps someone will see a connection between the two paintings.  I found this exercise to be a fun way to approach abstract painting.  I'm doing another now.