patterns of kingyo

I have a shirt I bought a few years ago covered in little kingyo (goldfish). It's a summer shirt and is sleeveless and given we're in the middle of another heatwave (38 degrees celcius yesterday and today) I decided to wear it the other day. When I first bought it, that shirt got a huge reaction from people in Japan. Goldfish or kingyo as the Japanese call them are a big part of the visual images connected to Japan. Like kimono, tea, sushi, and geta, for some reason goldfish are high up on that list too. All kinds of people came up to me and told me they liked my kingyo shirt. So when I decided to wear it a few days ago it made me 'homesick' for Kyoto and everything my mind associated with Japan and out popped this little kingyo card as a response to that mood. It also felt like a very Japan printmaking moment as I printed this, sweat rolling down my body as I rubbed the baren disc across the paper and wood block. I've spent many a sweaty day printing in the incredible humidity of a Japanese summer. Fortunately, Melbourne is a lot drier, but in 38 degrees you can still get pretty hot!