Clownfish Giclee Prints

"Who Are All These Clowns?"

Cost of print: $475
paper size: 23" W x 28 1/4" L
image size: 18 3/4" W x 23 1/2 " L
medium: gouache (opaque watercolor)
signed & numbered limited edition of 350

The copyright is printed on the white border that surrounds the giclee print, but will be covered when you mat and frame it. The copyright and the "C" shown here are NOT on the actual giclee print.

Clownfish

This original gouache (opaque watercolor) painting, by Dee Van Houten, is full of a variety of those fun and colorful clownfish, sea anemone's, coral, and sea grass. The vibrant details in this engaging painting are just as colorful in the final print.

As you will notice in the image, the clownfish appear to be swimming in and out of the picture plane, which gives them a feeling of movement in their underwater environment. This clownfish limited edition giclee print, will surely enliven any room with a colorful, decorative flair!

Once the low edition of 350 prints are sold out, you will not be able to purchase any more so place your order now! Framing not included.

Authentic

All of my limited edition giclee prints come with a "Certificate of Authenticity," which is a document to certify that the work of art described in the certificate, is a signed, titled and numbered, limited edition giclee print, reproduced on museum fine art watercolor paper, with the production supervised by the artist.

Printing Technique

High-resolution, digital inkjet printers are used to reproduce these giclee prints. The paper on which the painting was printed on, is watercolor museum, digital fine art paper, made of 100% cotton fibers that are lignin-free, acid-free and chlorine free. The inks used are pigment based giclee inks, which ensure that the prints can last over 125 years without noticeable fading.

About Giclee Prints

The life of a print depends upon several things, such as, what type of ink is used on the substrate (paper, canvas, or photo papers). Other important factor's in determining the life of your print is the environment in which you hang it in and what kind of lighting surrounds your print, for instance, florescence or natural lighting. All of these variables add to the life expectancy of your giclee prints.

All limited edition giclees are hand signed, numbered, and titled by the artist. These fine art prints are of excellent quality, using a wide variety of colors, high resolution, long lightfast properties, such as, archival substrates and pigment based inks, which will ensure an enduring life span of the giclee.

Introduction to Clownfish  

Author: Keith Quince

Article:
Clownfish are known technically as anemones. Anemones are a subfamily of damselfish, in the Pomacentridae family. There are 26 unique species of clownfish, 25 of them being in the Amphibian genus and only 1 in the Premnas genus. They are typically a small fish, mature males only growing anywhere from 2 to 5 inches in length.

Habitat

Clownfish are only found in the tropical waters of the Indian or Pacific oceans, and the Red Sea. These climits provide a suitable environment for anemone fish due to their warm temperatures. Clownfish tend to be bottom dwellers, and most notably reside in in-shore reefs, specifically inside sea anemones.

The anemone provides protection for the clownfish both by enabling the fish to hide and with it's poisonous tentacles, keeping other fish away. There is no definite information why the clownfish is not stung by the anemone, but many theories exist.

Prey or Predator?

In nature, a clownfish will attract it's pray by swimming around it's anemone and displaying it's bright colors. Once the victim, (all the time thinking that he is the predator), begins to approach, the clownfish will recede into the anemone with his prey following closely behind.

The sea anemone, once in contact with the clownfish, will sting, kill, and begin to eat the prey. This leaves the leftovers for the clownfish to snack on. Other forms of food are planktonic crustaceans and algae that may develop on coral or nearby rocks. Anemones themselves may provide food as the clownfish will pick at and consume dead tentacles.

Captivity

This fish is a very good first choice for saltwater tanks, which is one of the reasons they have become so popular in the United States and parts of Europe. Part of their suitability is found with anemones having a very small territory; which is good for the small area offered in fish tanks. The substrate area of the tank, meaning the area on the bottom of your tank adjusted for protruding rocks and sunken ships, is more important then the total volume of the tank.

A 20 gallon tank would be considered the minimum recommended size for clownfish. Living peaceably in your fish tank, a clownfish would require approximately 14 hours of light and 10 hours of darkness every day. These amounts may be adjusted and are only suggestions. Be careful of high nitrate levels.

Mature clownfish can sometimes tolerate these levels, but the larva and babies will almost certainly not. Include a large variety of food when feeding clownfish. Feedings should include live brine shrimp, frozen food, algae and the traditional flakes. Being that clownfish will have no predator in a fish tank, a sea anemone is not required to protect them.

Breeding

Many people believe anemones will not breed without the presence of a sea anemone, but this is not the case. After some time, a particular spawning site will be chosen. This spawning site will remain the same throughout the life of the clownfish pair. Clownfish will spawn all year round, laying their eggs in large batches. In the wild, eggs are normally laid on coral or rock that is near the anemone, though in your tank, they may be laid anywhere.

Once laid by the female, the male clownfish assumes the job of guarding the eggs until they hatch, typically 4 or 5 days afterwards. When clownfish reach sexual maturity, they will strike out on their own, searching for a vacant sea anemone. Clownfish may be expected to live around 3 to 5 years in captivity.

About the author: Keith Quince has had a interest in saltwater fish tanks and enjoys writing and collecting articles about them. Additional articles on saltwater fish are available.