Deep Hawaii Art: Kristine the Kala - Rainbow Unicornfish

Artist: Deep Hawaii Art
Title: Kristine the Kala - Rainbow Unicornfish Gyotaku
Medium:  Embellished reproduction, PrismaColors on fine art paper
Size: 20" x 24". Distressed wood frame

Lāna`iartist Kristin Belew painstakingly embellished this life-size Gyotaku original of a Kala (Unicorn fish) with watercolor and PrismaColors.   

Fun Facts from Kristin:

I created this print originally as a commissioned piece for a friend named Kristine.  Kristine lives in Hawaii and loves unicorns and rainbows so she requested this fish specifically to be painted in the Pride flag colors!!  It took a few weeks of trying before I finally speared this perfect size unicornfish and was able to create Kristine’s request.  Bluespine unicornfish (Naso unicornis) have prominent “unicorn horns” that they develop after achieving 6 inches of length.  They also have bright blue, razor sharp spines at the base of their tail.  We actually have to break off these spines prior to printing this fish in order to avoid piercing the paper.  My partner Kacy and I ate this fish for dinner right off the grill! For me, this piece is a unique conglomeration that celebrates LGBTQ people, Hawaiian rainbows, and this incredibly unique species with a unicorn horn!!! This piece symbolizes something much greater than us and our art and we want to pay it forward to help our community.  We are donating 20% of all sales of this piece to a non-profit LGBTQ Youth organization.