In Tarot card reading, seven of spades typically refers to mental preparedness, acquired through the use of imagination, including the rehearsing and visualizing of desired results. The seven of spades represents the positive mental habits of a natural winner. Skillful preparation justifies the optimism of a successful person. Soon after creating this composition, I was faced with a very challenging task involving an oral presentation to a potentially difficult audience. I carried a playing card-sized copy of the piece my pocket as a reminder the tremendous amount of meticulous preparation I had done in order to ensure success.

This fish is the Pacific spadefish (Chaetodipus zonatus), found along the coast of western North, Central, and South America. It is a member of the family Ephippidae, which contains seven genera and a total of about 20 species found in coastal waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Pacific spadefish usually swim in small schools around reefs or over sandy bottoms and eat small invertebrates. The fact that it swims in small groups and there are seven genera in the family helped spawn the idea for this whimsical composition.

Size:  36 x 24 inches  (2010)

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