‘Penny in the Fish’ handpainted faux vintage fairground sign

The original jestam boat cupboard lid found on the shore at Seasalter, Kent.

The reverse with latch

 I removed the brass latch

Starting to trace the area in which to place the design

The goldfish

Design complete 

Laying the design over the substrate to trace down

Testing the trace

A red biro shows up well in contrast to the pencil marks, useful for knowing where you’ve been

Design traced down

The original thumb-hole now painted in a rich copper colour

Adding white enamel paint

Embellishing with gold and black lines (pre-ageing)

The aged version

Faux wear marks where pennies hit the board

The final piece

Detail

Detail

Detail

Whilst walking the dog in Seasalter near Whitstable last Sunday, I found this hinged wooden boat storage lid washed up on the shore. The thumb hole gave me the idea that I could turn it into a vintage-style sign, purely for art’s sake, and the hole suggested a ball or coin game to me. Thus I came up with the ‘Penny-in-the-Fish’ idea as (certainly in the UK) a goldfish was a common prize at the fair. I imagined perhaps an old penny rolling down a wooden ramp to the target. The style is intentionally slightly unprofessional, to fit in with the naive look of the times. Mixed media on marine plywood.