Fatal Attraction

Fatal Attraction

This piece was a challenge, not only because it needed to flow but also because the two fish were not created on the same armature  (as you can see in this picture they are just sitting on top of each other to give the impression).

Beta's are the tiny fish found in pet stores in cups that you feel so sorry for because of their cramped quarters.  They are beautiful fish and if two males are put together fight often until all fins are missing and death occurs. They come in beautiful colors and if put side by side in different containers will spread their fins and gills and posture themselves in a wonderful sight to watch.

This was a balancing act also in getting the fish to look as though they were interacting when in reality they would never be actually together until welded in metal and patinaed.

This is a wonderful piece for either a foyer or an actual garden or pond area and the bases can be switched out for it to go into a pond of water. 

I used Chavant clay again and built my armature using pipes and flanges screwed into a heavy wood base. These were quite heavy when completed and stand almost 3 feet tall together. One of the challenges we had was holding while welding and ended up chaining the top fish up on an overhang  while holding the bottom fish in position. So needless to say it took two people.  Regardless of how it looks I had a some good solid welding spots but realized that if the bottom fin was not ground flat that the pieces would not balance correctly.