During my last show at the Riverside Arts Market I met a mother and daughter who were looking for art for their grandbaby-slash-baby respectively. They wanted to put something fun and colorful in the baby's room and spent a while looking through prints. The grandmother connected with the Funky Fish 4 and 5 originals (seen at the bottom of this post) and decided those would be the winners. They also took home some prints, but it's always a great joy when someone takes home an original piece or two, with the intentions of inspiring young humans.
Sometimes when I am creating (and you can ask my family about the nightmarish whining I do) I struggle with whether or not there is a point to the piece. Some art has great meaning while some is just pretty to look at. This mother-daughter-child trio reminded me that "just pretty to look at" is sometimes more than JUST anything. An infant or child does not have the life experience to interpret the deeper meaning in complex art, but a simple and fun piece can inspire the young to create deep and meaningful art themselves later in life. The Funky Fish may be mere eye candy to some, but eye candy to a child is mesmerizing and could lead to early brain activity that blossoms an artist greater than I will ever be.
Therefore, since the two Funky Fish I had available went on their way to be viewed by this precious little one, I created the next piece in the series. Number 6 is the largest Funky Fish so far at a whopping 6"x9". (Hey, the other ones were 4"x4" and 5"x5"!). The original has been listed for purchase at www.useeverycolor.com or by clicking any of the fish.
How do you feel? Do you agree that eye-candy is always more than it seems? Share your thoughts in the comments section. I look forward to reading them.
