Fly Fishing Art

Born in Seattle, Mark Yuhina Liu is a biologist studying animal behavior. If not chasing stripers, he's practicing watercolors and fishing illustration for kids.

To see more of Yuhina's work visit his website.

Primarily a landscape painter, Dave Sellers first gained notoriety as "Artist of the Year" for both California Ducks Unlimited and the California Waterfowl Association. Now Sellers works in a combined medium that he calls "notebook paintings," started when began taking breaks from fishing to paint landscape scenes.

To see more of Sellers's work visit his website at: www.davesellers.com.

Michael Simon's marvelously detailed watercolors have appeared many national magazines, including Trout, Fly Rod & Reel, and Fly Fisherman. He was also the illustrator of John Gierach's classic book Trout Bum and has produced murals and limited edition lithographs for Trout Unlimited, The Federation of Flyfishers and the American Museum of Fly Fishing.

To see more of Simon's work visit his website at: www.michaelsimonanglingart.com.

Mya DeRyan puts a refined touch on a old art form with her unique examples of the ancient Japaness art of Gyotaku ("Fish Rubbing"). DeRyan's rubbings embody her belief that detail should tell the greatest part of the story. She spreads her time between her Kaslo, B.C. studio and gallery, and touring as "Artist in Residence" to various fly fishing lodges around the world.

To see more of DeRyans's work visit her website at: www.thefishrubber.com.

Paul Gray is an angler first, artist second. He studied commercial art at Detroit's Center for Creative Studies and has worked professionally in the photographic and graphic art fields. Point Brulee, a small cedar-lined peninsula that dips south into the cold, clear waters of Northern Lake Huron, is the wilderness setting that inspires his work. To learn more about Gray's art visit the Point Brulee Studio Web site.

Bob White is a professional guide and artist who has spent countless hours researching sportsmen and women in action, from the wilderness of Alaska and his rural Minnesota home to the wide-reaching expanses of Argentina. You can see more of his art on his Web site, www.whitefishstudio.com.

The son and grandson of painters, Galen Mercer is today regarded as one of the most accomplished sporting and landscape artists of his generation. Owning a fluent style, he moves elegantly from still-life to sporting subjects to portraiture. Broadly collected, his work has appeared in numerous exhibits, books and articles. To learn more about Mercer's paintings visit: www.gmercerstudio.com.

Fred Thomas established a national reputation as an illustrator with such clients as Eddie Bauer Co., National Geographic Society, Patagonia, Microsoft and Alaska Airlines. Thomas's diverse portfolio includes dioramas, text books, and many commercial and fine art projects. His paintings hang in numerous corporate and private collections. The artist spends much of his free time fly fishing with his son Greg Thomas, well known outdoor and fly fishing writer. For more on Thomas's work visit www.fwthomas.com.

Sandy (Sam) Ottewell moved from the interior of British Columbia to Alberta in 1999 and began fly fishing with her husband, Kevin, along Alberta's famous west slope streams and rivers. Sandy's art realistically captures the movement and habitat of fish in water colour or acrylic. Her art has been commissioned for awards by Trout Unlimited Canada and for Ducks Unlimited and Casting for Life, and can be seen at the Terra Cotta Gallery (Black Diamond, Alberta) and the Gerry Thomas Gallery in Waterton (Alberta), as well as in fly shops and private collections. For more info visit www.sandyottewell.com.

For forty years Eldridge Hardie has painted the life he lives. He is well-known to serious collectors of contemporary sporting art and was the inaugural Trout Unlimited Artist of the Year as well as an Atlantic Salmon Federation Artist of the Year. He has exhibited at Artists of America, Great American Artists, The National Museum of Wildlife Art, and the American Museum of Flyfishing. For more information about Hardie's work visit www.eldridgehardie.com.

Vaughn Cochran, former Florida Keys fly fishing guide and original member of Jimmy Buffett's Coral Reefer band, was influenced by those experiences and his years of painting and fishing in Mexico, Costa Rica, the Bahamas and Belize. His work reflects his colorful observance of nature and has resulted in hundreds of pencil drawings, paintings, sculptures and ceramics. For more of Cochran's art, visit www.vaughncochranart.com.

Self taught in art from a young age, Jeff Kennedy works with bold strokes in pen and ink, watercolor, gouache and digital media. Many of his watercolors are held by private collectors. Jeff's current challenge is drawing a fishing fly a day for the next 365 days. To follow Jeff's daily fly journey visit www.drawingflies365.blogspot.com.

Paul Puckett specializes in custom fish portraits, wildlife and sporting art. Based in Atlanta and Cumberland Island, Georgia, Paul works from watercolor and oil, his loose style leaving room for the details that bring fish to life on paper. For more samples, visit www.paulpuckettart.com and www.catchandreleasepaintings.com.

Tim Borski paints unique wildlife art in watercolor, oils and acrylics, and he can be found daily in his studio in Islamorada in the Florida Keys or fishing in the backcountry — allegedly gathering inspiration and photographs for his art. His paintings primarily focus on bird and fish species, and Tim has a style all his own. For more information about Borski's work, visit www.borskiflies.com.

Rod Crossman's paintings have been published on the covers and pages of many sporting magazines, books and journals. His work has been exhibited and collected world wide. Rod and his wife Mary have raised an English Pointer, English Setter, two cats, three Labs, and two boys who inherited his love of moving water, wilderness and trout. His work is inspired by the idea, as he says, that "there is something more important in universe than ourselves." For more of Crossman's work, visit www.rodcrossman.com.

Mark W. Smith is an artist and a fly fishing guide on the Henry's Fork in Idaho and the Madison River in Montana. Mark uses gyotaku, or fish rubbings, and other imagery from nature in his paper pieces. These fish prints are first made on rice paper from actual fish, then cast into hand-made paper, producing sculptural relief and unique surface textures. To see more of Mark's work visit www.marksmithfishart.com.

New Hampshire artist Ellen McCaleb was influenced by 19th-century decoy carver John B. Russell — draw knives, spoke shaves and rasps help her coax fish shapes from wood — but her techniques are her own, employing layer upon layer of oil paint and shellac to create texture and lifelike color. To see more of Ellen's work visit www.fishcarvings.com.

Mike Savlen's unique style uses brushstrokes as bold as the fish themselves and colors that represent the fluid, explosive energy they possess. He uses as many as 50 layers of acrylic paint and washes on a single piece to create a hologram or 3d effect that makes viewers feel they can reach right into the painting and grab a fish. To view or purchase Mike's work visit www.savlenstudios.com.

The fly fishing experience — from the rugged, windswept drama of Atlantic coastal striper fishing to pastoral Pennsylvania limestone spring creek scenes — is the focus of Luther Kelly Hall's oils, acrylics and watercolors. Hall uses color, light and design to recreate the essence of his angling experiences. You can see more of his art on his Web site, www.lutherhall.com.

The son of a sailor, Benjamin McCormick spent his life around salt water and became addicted to fish at a very young age. Twenty-plus years of diving and photography eventually led this fisherman to become a full time artist, whose goal is to capture and share the feeling we all get at the "moment of the strike." You can see more of his photography and art on his Web site, www.benjaminmccormick.com.

Diane Michelin is a professional watercolour artist who was born in Montreal and resides in Nanoose Bay on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Diane's fly fishing fine art is displayed in private collections throughout Canada. the United States and Europe. You can see many more examples of Diane Michelin's art on the Diane Michelin Web site,

John Koch combines his love of fly fishing with traditional Eastern and Western wood-block printing techniques to produce unique print series . His work is hung in galleries and private collections around the world. You can see many more examples of John Koch's art on the Trout Lily Studios Web site.

Since 1989 Matt Zudweg has pursued the "lost art" of Traditional Sign Painting. His passion for fly fishing is evident in the designs he offers, many of which can be personalized. Matt's work has been recognized by collectors worldwide. You can see more of his work at www.carvedfish.com.

Derek DeYoung is an oil painter who has spent most of his life studying and painting fish. Much of Derek's work is focused on close up views of the beautiful patterns and colors that are found on a trout's face. These paintings range in size from 8x16" all the way up to a 30' mural on the side of a building. To see Derek's work visit his website at: www.canvasfish.com.

Josi Etter is a painter and fly fisherman originally from Germany who owns www.SketchandRelease.com and creates custom painted fish trophies. Josi blends technical and artistic skill to create beautiful images that have been displayed in galleries around the world and are featured in Trout Magazine. For more examples of her work visit www.sketchandrelease.com.

McNair Evans combines a fresh photographic eye with his love of fly-fishing, creating unique imagery on rivers around the world.  His work is featured in numerous publications, and his prints hang in galleries and private collections nationwide. You can see many more examples of McNair Evans's art on his Web site, www.mcnairevans.com.

Peter Corbin is primarily known for sporting landscapes, merging the natural wonders and elegant drama of the sporting life with the realm of fine art. Corbin's work is featured in many public and private collections around the world. You can see more of his art on his Web site, www.petercorbin.com.