India ink, watercolor. Sold

As a child in the Philippines, I was fascinated with the amazing variation in different kinds of fish. From the eel-like dojo (a type of loach) that I caught in the rice paddies to the exotic coral reef fishes I would see in my youth, I sensed an exciting, vast treasure of shapes, patterns, colors and textures, as well as behaviors.

The joy of gyotaku (fish printing) is in the challenge of getting a pleasing transfer: capturing details in permanent India ink, with little margin for error, of forms that are fragile and unique. I like creating a sense of space and movement in the compositions, each one possessing its own feeling or emotional tone. This dimension emerges both as we relate to aspects of them (for we have much in common) and we project aspects of ourselves onto them (for we are also very different).

There are so many parallels between fish and people, both as individuals and in groups. Fish watching is as universally engaging for us as people watching, yet with fish there is an added element: they exist in the dreamy fluidity of water with its connotations of essential vitality and mysterious. Having grown up in the east and later moved to the west, I have experienced much transition and cultural diversity, and my family has played a fundamentally important role in who I am. My fish, in all their forms and with all their unique behaviors, reflect that richness of existence that belongs to us all.