Alaska-Inspired Art · Pacific Halibut · Northern Lights
HaliBorealis: The Alaska Story Behind the Halibut Print
HaliBorealis is Fishe’s Alaska-born pattern combining Pacific halibut with the green, blue, and purple movement of the aurora borealis. Designed by artist Irene Meniconi, it celebrates a fish tied to food, work, sport, community, and stories told across coastal Alaska.
The print first arrived in 2022 as a bright new expression of home. Since then, it has grown across fishing apparel, cold-weather layers, boots, dry bags, hats, and accessories—without losing the idea at its center: deep water below, northern light above, and Alaska in every color.
HaliBorealis at a Glance
The Fish
Pacific halibut—powerful flatfish prized by commercial, recreational, and subsistence fishers across Alaska.
The Sky
Aurora-inspired greens, blues, and purples that echo the color and motion of a northern winter night.
The Artist
Irene Meniconi, whose nature-driven Fishe artwork turns fish species and wild places into expressive patterns.
In This Story
Where HaliBorealis Began
HaliBorealis is here! For Fishe’s newest pattern our inspiration comes from the place we call home: Alaska. Artist Irene Meniconi’s design features Halibut, a fish that Alaskans covet both for sport and sustenance + Aurora Borealis, the lights that fill the Alaskan night sky with color when the days turn cold. With HaliBorealis we celebrate fish that feed our local communities and test the meddle of anglers who come from near and far. We celebrate our friends and neighbors who ply deep waters in the hopes of catching a “barn door” (a giant halibut!). We celebrate a land that continues to fill us with wonder, where you might leave work in the evening and look up to see green, blue, and purple pulsating across the heavens. HaliBorealis captures the spirit of the place we love, and we can’t wait to share it with you. Check out HaliBorealis collection HERE.
HaliBorealis brings two unmistakable Alaska experiences into one print: the weight and power of a halibut rising from deep water, and the electric movement of the northern lights across a cold sky.
What Does HaliBorealis Mean?
The name is a Fishe blend of halibut and aurora borealis. That combination gives the pattern its subject and its energy.
The halibut gives the artwork a strong, broad fish silhouette grounded in Alaska’s coastal life. The aurora brings the color story: luminous greens, cold blues, and flashes of purple moving across darker ocean tones.
Together, the two create something more layered than a fish print. HaliBorealis is a wearable sense of place—part deep-water adventure, part winter-night wonder, and part tribute to the people whose lives stay connected to Alaska’s waters.
The HaliBorealis collection carries the halibut-and-aurora story across apparel, layers, footwear, bags, and accessories.
Why Halibut Is So Deeply Alaskan
Pacific halibut are not a decorative symbol chosen at random. They are woven into food, livelihood, recreation, and coastal tradition throughout Alaska.
A True North Pacific Giant
Pacific halibut are the largest flatfish. Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports that they can grow beyond eight feet and 500 pounds—which explains why exceptionally large fish earn the nickname “barn doors.”
More Than a Sport Fish
Halibut support commercial, recreational, and subsistence fisheries. That broad role is why the fish can represent a charter-boat memory, a working waterfront, and food shared with family all at once.
Built for Deep, Cold Water
Adults are bottom-oriented fish found across the North Pacific, including the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea. Their mottled upper side helps them blend with sandy or muddy seafloors.
For more species background, see the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Pacific halibut profile and NOAA Fisheries’ Alaska halibut overview.
The Artist Behind HaliBorealis
Irene Meniconi created the HaliBorealis design for Fishe. Her work often begins in the natural world, then moves beyond literal wildlife illustration into color, rhythm, and graphic shape.
That approach is especially effective here. A halibut is recognizable by its flattened form and broad body, but the print does not stop at biological accuracy. It lets aurora-like color flow through the fish, turning an Alaska species into an expressive landscape of its own.
Read more about Irene’s nature-centered creative work in Fishe’s Meet the Artist feature.
Irene Meniconi is also connected to other expressive Fishe patterns inspired by fish and wild places.
Reading the Color and Movement in the Print
HaliBorealis works because the two inspirations do different jobs. The fish gives the design structure. The northern lights give it motion.
Shape
The Halibut Holds the Composition Together
The broad fish form creates an immediate focal point. Even when the pattern is cropped across a sleeve, bag, or pair of leggings, the shape still feels connected to the original halibut inspiration.
Palette
Ocean Blues Meet Aurora Greens and Purples
Darker blues ground the print, while luminous green, turquoise, and purple details bring the visual lift associated with the aurora borealis. The contrast keeps the pattern energetic without losing its cold-water mood.
Movement
The Pattern Changes When the Wearer Moves
On clothing, the print shifts with a cast, a hike, or a paddle stroke. That movement makes the aurora concept feel especially natural: the artwork is never experienced as one flat, fixed image.
How HaliBorealis Lives Outdoors Now
The print has expanded well beyond its first release. Today, the HaliBorealis collection supports different seasons and kinds of adventure while letting the pattern appear at different levels—from full-print statement pieces to more restrained accents.
For Sun and Open Water
The HaliBorealis Solstice Hooded Sunshirt brings the print to a lightweight, quick-dry UPF 50+ layer for exposed days outside.
For Cold Starts and Layering
The HaliBorealis Thermal 1/4 Zip Top uses brushed thermal fabric and a stand collar for warmth during chilly mornings and shoulder seasons.
For Wet Decks and Working Weather
The Fishe x XTRATUF HaliBorealis 15-inch Legacy Boot carries the Alaska print onto waterproof, boat-ready footwear.
Other pieces let the pattern meet different needs: pocket leggings for active days, fleece and midlayers for warmth, fishing shirts for sun and storage, and dry bags for gear organization around spray and changing conditions. Availability changes, so the full collection is the best place to see what is currently offered.
How to Wear a Bold Fish Print Your Way
HaliBorealis can be loud, subtle, technical, or everyday depending on how much of the pattern you choose to show.
Let One Piece Lead
Pair full-print leggings, a sunshirt, or a jacket with navy, charcoal, black, or another grounded solid. The print stays central without making the outfit feel busy.
Use the Pattern as an Accent
A hat, headband, pocket lining, gear patch, or bag brings in the Alaska story without committing to a head-to-toe print.
Build for the Conditions First
Choose the garment by weather and activity—sun protection, thermal layering, waterproof footwear, or storage—then decide how boldly you want the HaliBorealis artwork to show.
Why HaliBorealis Still Feels Like Fishe
Fishe patterns are not simply decorative repeats placed on outdoor products. At their best, they connect species, place, art, and function. HaliBorealis does all four.
It begins with a fish that matters across Alaska. It borrows color from a sky that can stop people in their tracks. It comes through an artist’s interpretation rather than a stock wildlife graphic. And it continues onto gear meant to be used—on boats, trails, rivers, docks, road trips, and cold mornings.
That is why the print has room to keep evolving. The product may change, but the story remains recognizable: Alaska below the surface and overhead.
Conclusion
HaliBorealis is Fishe’s meeting point between Pacific halibut and the aurora borealis. It honors the deep-water fish, the anglers and communities connected to it, the color of Alaska’s winter sky, and the creative vision of Irene Meniconi.
Whether the print appears across a full performance layer or as one small accent, it carries the same idea forward: outdoor function can hold a real story—and Alaska has no shortage of stories worth wearing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is HaliBorealis?
HaliBorealis is a Fishe pattern inspired by Pacific halibut and the aurora borealis. It combines a halibut-centered design with greens, blues, purples, and darker ocean tones associated with Alaska’s northern lights and cold waters.
Who designed the HaliBorealis pattern?
Artist Irene Meniconi designed HaliBorealis for Fishe. Her nature-inspired work translates fish, wildlife, and wild places into expressive graphic patterns.
Why is it called HaliBorealis?
The name combines “halibut” with “aurora borealis,” directly reflecting the two Alaska inspirations behind the print.
What is a barn door halibut?
“Barn door” is an informal name anglers use for an exceptionally large halibut. Pacific halibut can grow beyond eight feet and 500 pounds, according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
Why is halibut important in Alaska?
Pacific halibut support commercial, recreational, and subsistence fisheries and are connected to food, work, tourism, coastal traditions, and family life across Alaska.
Is HaliBorealis only for halibut fishing?
No. The pattern appears on apparel and gear used for fishing, hiking, travel, paddling, boating, cold-weather layering, sun protection, and everyday outdoor life.
What colors are in HaliBorealis?
The pattern is built around dark ocean blues with brighter green, turquoise, blue, and purple movement inspired by the aurora borealis.
Where can I shop HaliBorealis?
Current products are available in the HaliBorealis collection. The assortment can change as products launch, sell through, or return.
Related Reading
Meet Artist Irene Meniconi
Learn how nature, color, and wild places shape the work of the artist behind HaliBorealis.
Introducing Beauty and the Bonefish
Explore another expressive fish pattern connected to Irene Meniconi’s artistic world.
Meet Artist Chaney Fray
Follow another Fishe artist’s process from fish observation to bold wearable pattern.
Carry a Piece of Alaska Outside
Explore current HaliBorealis apparel, layers, footwear, bags, and accessories—and choose the version of the pattern that fits your next adventure.
