Copycat

Seahorses are some of the most popular fishes. Everybody knows them. The very first drawing I had published in a 'magazine' was a self made copy of a seahorse. It was an illustration I had submitted with a very short story which I mainly had copied from a book. Hey, I was around eight or ten at the time! I had not learned about copyright in those days. Now I know copying is considered art in China... 

This 'first edition' seahorse had been published in a monthly newsletter. A stencil (remember those?). I have lost the copy (of my copy) but the organisation still exists. Delftse Natuurwacht is a foundation actively working with kids. All kinds of activities motivate them to understand and learn about nature. 

After all these years I still like seahorses. A few years ago my youngest daughter and I have been breeding them. Yellow Brazilian seahorses, Hippocampus reidi. Most of them turned out black within a few weeks. As seahorses also like to copy. They use camouflage to become one with their enironment. If you want your colored seahorses to maintain their colors, you'll have to add bright colored items into your fish tank. We added yellow pots and rope. 

Recently I started to create limited series of ID's (short for Identicals). Another process of copying, but in this case all copies are original artworks. If you want to know why I make handmade copies, read this blog. If you're interested in obtaining an ID of this Copycat Seahorse series, check my ETSYshop.