sacred fish

this image came to me in 1993. it is a combination of water colour, pencil, and acrylic paint. i gave the fish the colour of my eyes because i felt as i painted that it was like a self-portrait - in the use of the word "self" that i prefer which does not necessarily refer to my body but rather to the spiritual energy that i carry within my body. i love the way the scales are carved into little sections - all different in shape and colour - much like the manner in which we garner bits and pieces of experiences from an infinite number of sources, cull and reassemble them all into something that is symmetrical or synchronous or resonant with our perception of ourselves and call it our "personality" or who we are as we wish to know ourselves or more commonly - how we wish to have others know ourselves.
this summer i have been making a copy of the painting, tracing its shape and then adding in details as time and energy have permitted. i'd really like to see this image on a long-sleeved black t-shirt, on a set of dinner plates, and much enlarged into an acrylic painting. stained glass is also in the back of my mind.