What was our first piece?

Since our art started in the dive shop, the first piece we published was inspired by the dive shop itself.

For years, we’ve had a saltwater fish tank in our store. It’s on the dive shop sales floor, and children from the swim school frequently stop by to see the various fish. Within this tank is a large, very old, brittle starfish named Iker. He’s an interesting little creature that spans about 18 inches from one arm tip to the other. When he eats, he wraps his arms around the chunk of food like an octopus.

Clearly, he was the star of the building.

But then came the axolotl.

I’ve been in love with hellbenders and axolotls for years. So, when a friend mentioned one was for sale, I jumped at the chance, and Axel the axolotl entered the picture.
We joked for a while that we needed axolotl merch to sell because he was so popular. And I thought, “I could do that.”

It started with a simple sketch of an axolotl guitarist. The piece began as an AI depiction of what an axolotl would look like playing the guitar. It wasn’t perfect right off the bat, and it certainly wasn’t usable in its initial size.

I went through a few failed Photoshop and Illustrator attempts before I finally figured out how to create a larger vector file of the axolotl, with appropriate limbs and gills.

The second axolotl baseball piece was easier from there. Despite the fact I spelled “starring” wrong, I did like the end result. We sold a resounding zero, and I don’t know how many people caught on that he was the ‘ultimate comeback kid’ because we almost killed him a few times.

The guitar axolotl still sells, but more importantly, it was a chance to learn a whole slew of new skills that have led me to create more and more art.

Check out all the axolotl art that has spawned from this little creature!