Moorish Idol fish illustration by Alan J. Benge

If you have ever snorkelled or dived in tropical waters like Australia's Great Barrier Reef, you probably will have seen these marvellous striped inhabitants of the underwater world.  From an artist's point of view, they are fantastic to draw.  In this original acrylic painting, I portrayed the moorish idol on a background of colourful abstract shapes.  Splattered texture was used for effect, along with bold primary colour 'blobs' to represent the incredible beauty of the reef.  

Stylised yacht in stormy waters painting by artist Alan J. Benge

In this whimsical composition, I have tried to incorporate the idea of a rough day on the ocean wave.  Design elements, suitably stylised include curly wave shapes, triangle sails and spiky fish with a fierce sun overhead.  Menacing seagulls soar above the turbulent sea.  Use is made of stripes, zig-zags and circles.  It was fun to produce this light-hearted work, and may well inspire all those who sail yachts to wear their life jackets, and also, to take seasick pills !

Anemone fish acrylic painting by artist Alan J. Benge

I like anemone fish. These cute striped inhabitants are the comedians of the undersea world that comprises Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Their immaculate yellow and black costumes are great attention getters.
On a snorkelling expedition in the Whitsundays, I spotted these colourful characters darting around the coral.  This proved suitable inspiration for the above original acrylic painting which I completed later, on dry land.   The fish itself has been treated in a realistic manner, but the background is an abstraction rendition of coral and shell shapes in a mix of different hues.
I envisaged this type of painting would possibly complement the decor of a beachside pad or apartment.  All artists can learn a lot from our undersea environment, as a source of creative ideas.

Beaked coral fish abstract painting by artist Alan J. Benge

The underwater world offers great possibilities for the aspiring artist.  Faced with a wealth of marine life, fantastic corals, there are some marvellous opportunities for capturing this on canvas.
The above picture is of a beaked coral fish, and I have simplified the surrounding elements of the picture to appear as splashes of colour in red, blue, yellow or green.
I made use of a sponge to add texture, plus a toothbrush to create splatter.  I felt the fish stood out better on a mixed misty blue blackground, with the original white canvas forming a border around the picture.
Materials used were acrylic, and the original is not large, about 20 X 25cm, on a primed canvas panel.