Mermaid

September 2008
Watercolour on watercolour paper, 10" x 14"

A quick painting from imagination. I've had mermaids on the brain for a while, and this one finally broke the surface. She's a bold one, completely unashamed of her nakedness, looking at you with the tiniest secretive smile. Her tail looks like it might be from the koi carp family, but her hair matches the waves. (The hair on her head, that is. Her body hair is purple.) I'm not sure if she's revelling in being underwater, where her hair can uncoil and express itself, or whether she's having a bad hair day

The decorative spirals in her hair and tail are composed of the tiniest, most painstaking detail. The brushstrokes are incredibly delicate, using a Chinese ink brush optimised for calligraphy. I'm rubbish at calligraphy, but I do like being able to get my details as tiny and precise as I want them, and I can't get the hang of inkpens!

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