John Edwards from Fish Recreations takes us behind the scenes of his business and the work that goes into a fish replica.
I often get asked how I got into doing fish replicas, and the answer is quite simple really. I like art in many forms, both working with my hands and painting, and I like fish. I am a self taught artist and have drawn/painted or worked in many mediums for as long as I can remember. I used to do wildlife/bird paintings and a lot of dog portraits.
I have been an angler most of my life, even though my father was not, and I can remember fishing as a kid with my mates or brothers down the local river, but especially the local piers and beaches. I mainly did shore fishing and during my adult life I have spent many, many winters on the cold North East beaches in the depths of winter.
Then, after health problems and finally an operation on my spine curtailed my sea fishing for quite a while I did not fish seriously for some time. About four to five years ago I got into fly fishing and am really enjoying this now in conjunction with a renewed interest in sea fishing, both boat and shore. Although due to ongoing health reasons I can't fish as much as I would like too.
I get real satisfaction from creating a fish for someone, knowing that it is a special fish for many reasons to that individual. And as such I would not supply a replica unless I would be happy with it myself. This has always been my philosophy with my art work, after all why should someone pay for something they did not like ?
I actually started doing replicas seriously only about seven years ago now. I had been toying with fish taxidermy but then saw some replicas on a USA web site and said to myself “I could do that!" My fist attempt was not a pretty sight!! After the initial realization that it was not as easy as it looked I started to learn the ropes, and spent a lot of time and money experimenting with products, materials etc. to get the desired results. Even now I continue to move forward and try to better myself with each commission.
My big break, so to speak ,came after I took a stand at Scone Palace Game Fair a few years back, the fair was rained off after only one day but on that first day I met Gary Wingate from Glasgow Angling Center, and was kindly invited to take a table at their open weekend. Thanks to Gary and owner Paul Devlin my work was seen by hundreds of people that first weekend, and of course at consequent shows. I also started my web site and Facebook page, the latter of which has proved invaluable in spreading the word.
Once a few orders started coming in I had to think of a work space, and I now work from a garden shed/workshop for all of my molding/casting work, (you do not want those fumes in the house,believe me!) and I converted our loft space into a studio where I do all my modelling and final painting.
The fish replicas are made from various resins, mostly polyester/fiberglass but also polyurethanes and others. The fins proved to be a slight set back early on until I eventually found a way of making them more flexible. I hand paint all my own acrylic fish eyes, and never ever use ready coloured eyes. Every fish is different and my replicas have to match a specific fish.
I use a mixture of hand painting and air brushing to achieve the final colouring, I also use multiple mediums, some very unexpected and many that no one else will be using. This process is done in many layers, built up with gloss layers in between to achieve the desired depth of colour found in real fish.
One individual scale can have as many as 14 layers on it ! I have counted up to 4000 individual scales painted on a small one side fish, so times this by an average of say ten layers brings the total to 40,000 indidually painted scales, this will give you some idea to the work involved.
When I first started I did not like the idea of mounting fish on aboard although they are still very popular I really wanted something different and so started my 3D table style fish. These are molded in dynamic positions to add an all important movement to my work. I also try to be as artistic as I can with my 3D mounts, each piece is designed carefully to look as aesthetically pleasing as possible.
I usually work with clients very closely at times to achieve the look they might want, or what I think would look right. The slight drawback from the customers point of view is that the 3D style mounts are more expensive than the wall type due to the aditional time and work involved.
I can, and occasionally do get asked to do traditional" looking mounts in bow fronted cases . These do look nice but the cases take a lot of work to complete.
As for the replicas themselves, you can either have a mold/cast direct from a dead fish, or I simply work from photographs (very commonplace these days). When I work from photos I can source a “cast” to match the client's fish, these can come from my own mold collection, or from colleagues in Europe and the USA. I then alter the cast to match the fish exactly. This often involves major alterations and consequently a lot of work. If I can't get an exact match I simply wont take the commission on or will price accordingly and actually make a fish from scracth, but this is very time consuming.
If you order a fish the price and completion time are completely dependent on the species and size, and if I am working from the actual fish or from photographs. I always try and give the best value for money with my pricing. Working on a £ per inch figure simply does not work, especially for small or long thin fish or fish with less detailing. On average with my current workload a replica would take anywhere from four to nine months from payment of a deposit to completion.
I have been lucky enough to have done a varied number of fish species, and my artistic side always enjoys working on fish that are a little different from the norm. Most of my work tends to be game fish, trout/salmon in particular but also popular are pike and perch. I must admit a big Atlantic salmon takes some beating when it comes to looks.
If you are wanting to see my work in person I try my utmost to attend the open weekends at the Glasgow Angling Center, and I do have a few pieces on display in local shops and fisheries, Hardy of Alnwick for instance. I can courier my fish anywhere in the UK and indeed abroad, but I much prefer clients to collect, it is much less stressful for both parties!
If anyone is thinking of getting a replica done, you can either freeze the fish if you decide to take it, I can arrange a courier to collect at your convenience, and take as many pictures as reasonably possible on capture. Also take a length measurement, the weight is not really necessary as the length and shape of the fish are most important to achieve a good match. If you release the fish, simply take as many pictures as you can before release, and measure the length .
I do struggle with many species for mold and casts especially for coarse fish and I rely heavily on people donating dead fish for me to mold. Any fish found dead in good condition may be suitable but it would mean it has to be frozen by the finder. I get casualty fish from fish farms, fisheries and anglers alike, all fish die at some point from many causes and at least I can use them and put them to use after their death.
I do have a web site as mentioned: http://www.fishrecreations.co.uk/
And of course a Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/fishrecreationsuk/?ref=tn_tnmn
I can be reached by email: john@fishrecreations.co.uk
or mobile 07930586100