08/31/2026
Some pieces are harder to create than others.
As I finished another original from Eli’s Bonnethead and gently pulled the rice paper from the easel, emotion flooded in.
In an instant, I was back at Tybee Marina—the joy on Eli, Erick, and Susan’s faces as they handed me their biggest Bonnethead to date after an incredible morning together on their charter trip.
As a deckhand, I had the joy of sharing many days and great fishing experiences with the Boyer family during their regular trips to Tybee. Later, when I started practicing Gyotaku, they began collecting artwork of the species they had caught.
After learning of their family’s loss of both Eli and then his father Erick to su***de, I couldn’t bring myself to take the remaining raw prints from their tube for a long time.
But eventually, the time came.
And when it did, the painting flowed through me with an ease and clarity I hadn’t expected—as though their spirits were there, gently helping me through it.
As I look at this shark, I don’t just see a fish.
I see that day.
I feel the joy of a family together on the water. I remember the excitement of a great catch and the smiles waiting for me on the dock.
It is an honor to preserve these moments through my artwork—a responsibility, a connection, and a privilege I will never take lightly.
https://www.theeliproject22.com/
Susan Boyer
