"Flying must be like swimming in the sky," the little koi thought, and dreamed he swam among the stars.

In an illustration class a while back, we were given a project to illustrate a children's book cover; we also had to come up with the name of the book, following a structure like "A Fly in the Ointment" or "A Bull in a China Shop." I came up with the title "A Koi Among the Stars," and originally did this illustration in watercolor. Being primarily a digital artist, I was never happy with that original watercolor, so I ended up repainting it digitally and I'm very happy with how it came out. How can you not love that little guy?

Date: October 2008
Tools: Corel Painter IX
Dimensions: 4200 x 3300 pixels (14" x 11" @ 300 dpi)