This painting started on an old scrap piece of ply wood that I had been experimenting on. The background was laid with imitation gold leaf, carelessly painted in some areas with raw umber and others with gold paint, and then sanded and scratched to create a distressed look. This background wasn’t intended to look like water but I thought it would give an interesting back drop to a painted fish. I chose the Silver Carp.

Silver Carp are actually considered to be a nuisance in water ways but I thought they had such character that they were worth painting. Maybe the old scrap board adds to the mood for the unwanted Carp.