Senior Amanda Jackson turns people into fish with art
December 4, 2018
After working for three hours, senior Amanda Jackson created a piece of art inspired by the American Gothic painting. She replaced the husband and wife with two octopi named Herald and Gretchen. Jackson got encouragement from friends and family who thought she had a talent which inspired her to create art.
“I do a lot of fish art pieces,” Jackson said. “I take famous paintings and put fish where the people are and a lot of people enjoy them because they’re so weird.”
Art is a creative way for someone to express how they feel or to create something for others enjoyment. With every piece of artwork comes a feeling the viewer gets when they see it.
“People can feel however they want about it and interpret it a different way. It’s just supposed to get a weird reaction out of people and make them laugh,” Jackson said.
She often does pieces where she replaces the people in artwork with fish. Jackson created another piece called the ‘Mona Reggie’ where she replaced Mona Lisa with a fish.
“I was really into fish at one point,” Jackson said. “I decided I wanted to do more with them and that’s when I got the idea to turn people into fish. I love seeing the finished product.”
Even as a kid, Jackson was always drawing. When she was around eight years old, Jackson would copy shapes she saw around her house onto paper. She would then show her mom what she drew because she thought she mimicked them well. Jackson would draw for fun and wanted to grow into her skill.
“I just wanted to hone the skill I had to make it better,” Jackson said. “Art lets you be creative. If you have a unique picture in your head, you can get it out into the world. People create the weirdest things and it just amazes me.”
Jackson will continue to create art as she finishes her senior year. She is currently in an AP art class and her next project is a piece dealing with backgrounds and foregrounds. Jackson is considering turning her passion into a potential career as an artist.
