Octopus and friend are not usually synonymous words in my dictionary – I am after all rather phobic of things with 8 legs and that would include sea creatures like an octopus! The list of 8 legged things on earth and sea is a comprehensive one – I guess it is not surprising that one day I would be required to paint one… So when I was approached to paint an octopus as a wedding gift for a dear friends son and his wife I swallowed my horror, and accepted the commission. They had selected the octopus as their couple animal… I wondered if this was a new thing, 32 years married and I had never heard of couple animals, but that doesn’t mean its not a thing, right!? And an octopus of all things…. It took me about 10 days before I could really look at the photographs they had sent me to start processing the commission… And how do I paint something so abstract that signifies a couple in any kind of sense that was relevant to them and an octopus! When I asked them to explain the couple significance their mutual love of the sea creature and its grace and beauty was evident. It clearly was not a shared plate of Calamari from a local restaurant that was the connection here, I would need to think a little more deeply than that!

Of the photographs they sent I selected two. One for an idea for the background, and the other because the image was beautiful, I thought it would make a good painting, and i loved playing with the idea of the subtlety of all the flesh tones. And if I had to be really selfish here, I couldn’t see all the eight legs in the image.

The background was important too. I wanted it to be an inky black with elements of a deep blue and variations of green blue and pthalo turquoise breaking through the black. Using a silicon blade to apply the paint rather than a brush would help create the feel of the ink diluting as it begins to dissipate. An octopus when triggered inks, this is symbolic in this painting of our triggered responses when we communicate. This is a defence mechanism in an octopus used to escape their prey, which made me wonder what defence mechanisms we may use to defend ourselves in a relationship… Anger, silence, babbling, violence, communication. Some defence mechanisms may be healthy, others considerably less so, but they will always be there and will always be distinctive within an individual and the dynamics of their relationship. There is something infinite in a response and a reaction, it can go around in circles unless we are conscious of our behaviour. Ultimately a relationship and marriage needs healthy defences and boundaries if it is going to survive a lifetime, and I wanted the ink and its dissipation to signify this. I wanted the deep colour of the ink to dissipate into the brighter turquoises and octopus to materialise from its depths.

The eye is symbolic of what it sees – both conscious and unconscious forces within the dynamics of a relationship. Octopus are believed to be colourblind, so what does it really see? Their weirdly shaped pupils may allow them to detect colour and mimic the colours of their background, but does this really mean they cannot see colour. Possibly symbolic of any relationship – how honest are we with each other, how much do we consciously choose to see, and how much do we keep hidden, and how much of this dynamic effects the longevity of a marriage. The vision of an octopus is considerably better than that of a human – It sees everything, this could be interpreted as your subconscious registering what it sees and clarity coming when the ink clears. In other words communicate about what you “see.”

The colours of the flesh of the octopus signifies the variety of depth within a marriage partnership, and warmth together with cooler violet elements all signifying the living, nurturing essence of all sides and aspects of a marriage.

And finally my own personal growth through this painting. Overcoming my horror around the octopus enough to study it and understand the form so I could paint this. Granted one tentacle at a time, but is a relationship not about coping with adversity and dealing with challenges one step at a time to come out the other end successful.

I wish you both love, laughter, loyalty and happiness – may your challenges never be insurmountable, and may you approach life with joy and humour, it will carry you through the good and bad with grace and compassion.