Fish and Wildlife Artist
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a painting of carp swimming and feeding together

Carpe Diem

R 1,500.00

SOLD, commissioned (80cm x 101cm (32" x 40") Acrylic on board)
Please contact craig@wildlifeartist.co.za for enquiries
© Craig Bertram Smith

Carp fishing, a relaxing pastime, synonymous with carefully prepared flavored baits, creating feeding grounds, patience and a little bit of luck. They are beautiful fish, not sleek speedsters like the blue water game fish, but challenging and full of character and charm. Not to be underrated though, they are no push over especially when using fly fishing tackle, an exhilarating method of fishing for them. When stalking the big specimens, they fight hard, but the biggest challenge is getting your fly close to their mouths and knowing when they have taken it. Crust fishing is a lot of fun too, just a hook with a floating crust. Whether targeting them on fly or specimen fishing with boilies, carp are one of most adored freshwater species worldwide.

In general carp are found in murky water due to their feeding habits. They are the grazers of the mud flats sifting through the debris for morsels of food. This was tricky to conceptualize as I wanted to show carp in their natural habitat with their interesting fin, scale and mouth detail but without losing too much of it due to the murkiness of the water. Quite noticeable when stalking them are their orange mouths and fins of which I emphasized. I wanted to demonstrate their feeding habits as they use their mouths as hoovers to suck up and taste the mud, separating food particles. They are social, often found in groups when feeding, I took the opportunity to paint a mirror carp variant, shifting over to the next feeding section.



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