The Gathering of Koi

posted in: INSPIRATION | 6

I have been on a fish kick lately, and finally created the mixed media Koi piece that has been swimming around my head for awhile.

easel

It was a fun process, as every mixed media adventure seems to be!

To create the background on this 18 x 24 inch canvas, I altered a background of National Geographic magazine strips with Citra Solv concentrated cleaner. (See this post for the process!)

background

Then I created my fish by cutting the basic shapes out of a poster that had the colors I liked.

poster

I layered more papers, and paint onto this base, and added some spots using punchinella (sequin waste) as a stencil to give the impression of scales.

close up papa closeup mama

I also found a tie dyed looking green paper napkin in my stash that worked well for the whimsical water plants.

close up sea weed close up

I made sure that the design wrapped around the deep sides of the canvas, so the piece can be hung without framing.

edge

All in all, I was pretty happy with my first efforts at playing with Koi!

the gathering watermark

This print is available in my etsy shop here.

6 Responses

  1. Karen Tickle

    Absolutely genius and original.
    I’m new to this and can’t seem to layer my pages without wrinkling.
    Have you any advice to combat this? – thank you

    • Kayann Ausherman

      That is tricky Karen, my best advice is twofold: 1. try using a thinner layer of medium, or a different glue entirely that is dryer, like YES paste. 2. take your time while gluing, using your fingers to smooth out wrinkles and bubbles. If air pockets do form, use an xacto knife to cut a small slit and work in some adhesive underneath. Hope that helps!

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