Viviparous Blenny
The video was shot as a stop-frame animation (using 935 photos in total). I used the given shape of the EelPout on the Fish Trail relief, which dictated the way the fish swam in the animation. Apparently, older EelPouts can eat the smaller/younger ones when other food sources are scarce - hence the end sequence. Whether or not they explode as a result of this is another matter!
The music/soundtrack was built up from recordings I made from hitting the actual Eelpout stone image with sticks. A rhythmic phrase was repeated throughout the short video, & helped to build up the rest of the rhythm track, with sparse music added around it to help create a 'fishy element' to the piece.
The drawing is entitled (unsurprisingly) 'EelPout'. It's A4-size, & is black pen drawn onto a print of the rubbing - taken from the original stone relief. I wanted to 'enhance' the fish, by repeatedly writing 'EELPOUT' on it, & using some of the cracks in the relief to add more 'movement' within the fish shape. The drawing/idea was spontaneous
Artist: Graham Graham Beck
Fish Profile
Eelpout - Zoarces viviparus
Conservation status
Eelpout are valuable bioindicators due to their sensitivity to pollution, making them useful for assessing the health of marine environments.
The IUCN list them as Least Concern.
Their biggest threat are changes in water temperature due to climate change, pollution, and bycatch. They are monitored in the Baltic and North Seas, for their abundance and health and are included in the EU Marine strategy framework.