‘So long and thanks for all the fish’ is an unsettling iconographic image that is, at the same time, light-hearted due to the colours, style and tone of voice. The composition is playful and graphic, with precise lines and intuitively chosen blocks of colour that are characteristic of Ingmar’s figurative, abstract and typographic work.
At the centre is a terrified figure of Christ, revealing his hands dripping with green blood. His unusual nudity, sharp teeth, single eye and keyhole are equally striking. Behind Christ, we see a medallion and three fish, a symbol of Christ himself, but also a reference to Douglas Adams’s science fiction series 'The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy'.. In it, dolphins depart from Earth – which has been condemned to the scrap heap – with the message ‘So long and thanks for all the fish’.
‘Icons‘ is a series of pop art prints created by Ingmar in 2019 and 2020. In this series, modern and historical narratives are submerged in colour and intuitively woven together. Bright, contrasting colours and clean, graphic outlines strip the imagery of its religious earnestness and place it in the world of pop art.
‘So long and thanks for all the fish’ has been published as, amongst other editions, a fine art print on 50×50 cm watercolour paper. In addition, a large 150×150 cm inkjet print has been produced on vinyl, and the icon is available as an inkjet print on an 80×80 cm acrylic panel.
Features and specifications
Title: So long and thanks for all the fish
Year: 2019
Software: Illustrator
Process: Inkjet printing
Material: Acrylic plate
Dimensions: 80×80 cm