Name: João Paulo Gomes (aka JP)
Hometown: Lisbon, Portugal
How did it all begin?
Hmm, let me think… must have been about 5 years ago. I think we all some way or another start of with Goldfish but then evolve from there, but the scaping “bug” really caught up with me when I was on sick leave. You could say too much time on my hands. I saw a tank online for sale 170 litres (45 us gallons) and I knew that I had to have it. From there the idea was to have something with real plants, lots of plants, something that I could learn, see how they grow, experiment with cuttings, etc. First couple months I went through the whole process of algae (that’s what you get if you’re not patient and rush things) but then as time goes on you read more, you chat on forums, facebook, etc and you learn! And then you make more mistakes but it’s fun. It’s all a learning process.
After that came the nano tanks, these I really love from 16lt to 36lt right down to pico tanks.
Who inspires you?
Oh…. So many people. The first that always comes to my mind would be Filipe Oliveira. That treescape “One step closer” of his is just mind-blowing! Also, Oliver Knott, his scapes for me demonstrates that you don’t have to conform with the norm, be different add your personal touch. The late Takashi Amano for nature aquarium. Sascha Hoyer for his out of the box thinking. Gosh, there are so many talented people out there that I try to draw a bit from each of them.
What is your favourite style?
I don’t have a particular kind of favourite style it's just for me what catches my eye, but the more variety of plants the better. #Ihaveaplantaddiction
What is your highest ranking?
That’s easy… 1st in 12 meters breaststroke in the school swimming competition no seriously, I’m not much into competitions, maybe someday I’ll entre who knows?
What do you love about aquascaping?
The people. The community. I have been very fortunate over this time to collaborate with some great people and companies, from naming a book and helping out with his promotion (can’t mention the name by he’s a famous German scaper, OK), to meeting in person some wonderful people through social media who at live events just recognise you and come up to say hello (strange feeling) and to now being good friends from all over the globe. To quote a hashtag from @Aquaflora.nl by the Dearest Esther Mous #Aquascapingmakesmyworldgoround and it does. That’s what love about Aquascaping!
Do you have any other interests outside of the aquarium?
Other interests, of course, My two Labradors. Helping out at friends with dog training and socialising school. Photography is also another of my passions, capturing moments and expressions.
What lies ahead?
Well, for now, I’ll continue to do PR for my crazy little German brother Sascha Hoyer. We have some projects in the pipeline which should be fun to see how they come out.
I’ll also be putting together an ADA 60P tank shortly so that I’m looking forward to. Then there are the weekly water changes but for now... I’ll just follow Filipe Oliveira's advice… “love what you do and do what you love”
Final word?
I just want to give a big thank you CO2ART for your support and high-quality products! (was that too much? Nah it's true!!! )
