Paul Riley shows how literature, poetry, philosophy and religion can fire the imagination of an artist as he is inspired by a philosophical story about two monks and the happiness of fish.

'The Happiness of the Fish is a philosophical story about two monks, Zhuangzi and Huizi, who were standing on a bridge over the Hao River watching the fish frolicking beneath them,' says Paul Riley.

'When one monk observed how happy they looked, the other retorted that he can’t know that for he’s not a fish! There follows a wonderful zen discourse that can be interpreted in many ways.

'I have often depicted this inspirational story and swear I know when fish are happy – for example to see the sun, to play in the shadows, to frolic in the rain, et cetera.'

The Happiness of the Fish, watercolour on Bockingford Not, green tint, 140lb (300gsm), 38x57cm)

Stage one

On the right are my tools: a hake brush, a scalpel for scratching out scales, a rat-hair brush, a medium-size wolf-hair brush, a traceur, a sponge for wiping in the fish, masking fluid.

Colours include indigo and perylene green. In the palette is a selection of oranges and yellows and some May green. To the left is a brief watercolour sketch of the composition.

Stage two

Using the traceur and a mixture of indigo and perylene green, I drew the lilies.

The lily flowers were masked out using low-tack masking tape (ProDec). The image needs to be done as spontaneously as possible, but still needs careful planning.

Stage three

I masked out to the inside edge of the lilies with great care, because Bockingford paper – like many other papers – tends to delaminate when the tape is removed.

To further de-tack the tape I stuck it to my clothes before applying it to the image.

I also masked out the fish using masking fluid and a sponge. I lightly soaked the sponge before applying the fluid.

Stage four

This is the bold stage – here you can see why all the masking preparation was done. These are the reflections of the trees in the background.

I used a mixture of indigo, perylene green and a little phthalo green. A few touches of permanent rose were dropped in on the right-hand side.

You can also see the softer effect of the sponged masking fluid.

Stage five

To remove the tape, I used a heat gun, so as not to tear the paper, and my finger to remove the masking fluid.

I stroked in the colour to give it a soft edge; I then wiped with the sponge into the water area so that the fish appear submerged and moving. In fact, the whole painting hinges on getting this right.

I used a small hog-hair brush with trimmed bristles to wipe out details, including the fins.

Whilst the paint was wet, I used the scalpel to scratch out scales.

Details were added using the rat-hair brush. For the leaves I used the hake and the traceur.

Because the paper was tinted, I was able to add highlights to the lily flowers using white gouache.

The finished painting

The Happiness of the Fish, watercolour on Bockingford Not, green tint, 140lb (300gsm), (38x57cm)

Notice how the tape gives different edges to the masking fluid. The problem with masking is that the edges can be a little abrupt.

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Paul Riley teaches at his home and studios in South Devon. For details telephone 01803 722 352, email [email protected] or visit www.coombefarmstudios.com.

This demonstration is taken from the June 2022 issue of The Artist. Enjoy endless inspiration with access to past and present issues of both magazines, plus exclusive video demos, tutorials and more, with our Studio Membership! Discover how you can join today. 

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