Thursday, April 10, 2008

Of Beauty, Eyes and Beholders: My Fish Tale

#166 - Draw a fish.

He is about one foot in length, made of some lightweight cement mixture rather crudely smeared on a wire mesh armature. If you can't see his charm, I can only assume that is because my drawing failed to capture it. I found him, serendipitously, at a craft fair, only because I had stooped down to tie my shoe. He and his half-dozen fish and amphibian friends were stashed far out of sight under a table of very nice but very expensive pottery.

When I asked his price the vendor seemed confused, or maybe a little insulted. It seemed these quirky creatures, fashioned by a ne'er do well in-law, were only brought along to the fair out of a sense of familial obligation. The potter could not imagine that anyone would actually want to buy one! After I finally convinced him I was serious he quoted me a price of five bucks. I left happy, and so did my husband, because he had impulsively told me to pick out anything I wanted. Nothing else I'd looked at that day had been priced at less than a hundred dollars. (I've always been a cheap date!)

12 comments:

Alan said...

a very whimsical fish.

Ann said...

Love the fish! I agree, you made a good selection at the craft fair.

DALowe Artist said...

This is such a cool story. I love your drawing - the way you do the cross-hatching is wonderful.

kmuhlstadt said...

What a lovely story! It just goes to show that just because something isn't "your taste" it doesn't mean it isn't something someone else would love. Art is in the eye of the beholder right? I think he's very charming. I would love to have one of my own!

Great sketches...I enjoyed them very much.

Margaret McCarthy Hunt said...

what a wonderful sketch

Margaret Ann said...

Very cool piece of art...nice work on the sketch! :)

Lynn said...

You did a great job on this charming little fellow. And I love the story of how you came to be soul mates.

Clare said...

Wow, Sensational drawing and great story-telling, thanks for sharing!

seesue said...

Love the story and your beautifully detailed sketch as well.

Sharon said...

Wonderful shading on this odd little fish! I'm sure the relative was thrilled to make a sale.

Alison said...

I would have bought this too, I think - very quirky

E-J said...

This is wonderful - full of character. Your drawings are wonderful. Your blog is wonderful. Will come back often!