Elizabeth Karcher loves fish. She loves to spearfish, to eat fish. She even loves to rub fish.
"Being on the water is the most natural thing you can do," said Karcher, who has owned property on Big Coppitt Key since 1971, and who spends at least a week a month in the Keys. "I love everything about fish, so when I saw an Oriental ink rubbing of a fish, I knew I could do a better job than just outlining it in black; fish need more respect than that."
Just a year ago, Karcher added the subtle color of dolphin fish or hog snappers to her life. She shifted her business focus from being a St. Petersburg building contractor to being an artist. Almost overnight, her fish rubbings took off, selling to art collectors, fishermen and interior designers.
"I've been around fish all my life, but it took a lot of trial and er" she said.
"Most recently, my art has been given as the top awards for Geiger Key's fishing tournament and Hog's Breath's Tourney."
Karcher has plenty of access to fish. In addition to her own time on the water, her son Dane is a "Dane helps me get fish" because Karcher won't kill a fish just to paint it: "If I kill it, I eat it."
The art of fish rubbing is akin to running the hundred-yard dash. Anyone can do it, but winning the race demands a lot
"I apply the colors directly onto the fish's anatomy to get the pattern and texture of its scales," said Karcher. "While the paint is still wet, I blend primary colors to the hue and tints I want, then I lay the canvas on the fish. It all takes place in 15 minutes or less."
Karcher tries to be true to the natural colors of whatever fish she's painting, but she does take artistic license with fish eyes, which she paints in after the rubbing is complete. She uses four or five different canvas types to match texture according to the type of fish. For instance, the sailfish pictured here is on sailcloth.
The background is always left white. And because Karcher sometimes paints fish on the site of fishing tournaments, the concentration is intense: she has to get it right the first time.
"When I'm painting at a fishing tournament, after I do the rubbing on canvas, sometimes I do a second rubbing on the sweaty shirt the fisherman's wearing. The shirt he's wearing when he catches the fish is as much a trophy as the fish," said Karcher.
Karcher doesn't participate in art shows or sell through art galleries in the Keys. She makes appointments with anyone who wants to see her art, which averages between $100 and $200, depending on the size of the fish. Call her at 293-8586 or email her at BigCoppitt@aol.com.