Available Fine Art Originals

Size – 18 x 24″ – Oil on Board

Size – 16 x 24″ – oil on board

Size – 16 x 24″ – oil on board

The morning I’d landed the Tarpon, I specifically asked my dad to turn the boat before we released him back to the depths, because I just had to see what the fish looked like in the sunlight. So dad turned the boat, and as the sunlight shone over the Tarpon, it took on an entirely different pallette of colors. I was shocked to see many different colors in each scale…

So I decided I needed to do a second painting of the tarpon.. this one showing what the fish looked like in the sunlight..
For the past few days I’ve spent time working on this new painting, titled “Abstract Tarpon Flank – Sunlight”.

Size – 16 x 36″ – oil on board

14 x 20″ oil on board

Inspiration: This winter I spent a month and a half in the Florida Keys. While there I fished and became friends with a handful of captains. I had the pleasure of spending one day at the “Bars End” off from Key West with Capt. Justin Rea.

We free lined pilchards back into the tidal currents with light spinning gear, and the action was fast! We landed one King Fish and Bonita after another. Knowing that the ultimate prize catch was a Wahoo, with each fish I hooked I’d look at Justin and ask..”Could this be a Wahoo?”

He’d shake his head no. “You’ll know when you got a Wahoo, the reel will hit pitches that would make a dog howl!” Turned out we didn’t have the baitfish that the Wahoo really wanted.

But late that afternoon a fish grabbed my bait, I quickly closed the bail and came tight… The drag began to SCREAM! As it was pushed to its limits I don’t think even the folks at Penn meant for it to make that noise. There was no end to it either… the fish just kept going.

Justin looked at me with a huge grin and said, “Now that is what it’s supposed to sound like!” He started the Outboard, pulled the trolling motor, and gave chase. The Wahoo did exactly what he needed to to get rid of the annoying line attached to him that slowed his run from 60 mph to about 58mph.  He went straight to the anchor rope of the nearest boat. After 10 minutes of dragging Justin’s Yellowfin Bay Boat around, he wrapped us on the anchor line, said his goodbyes and was gone.

As the saying goes, the fish that gets loose is the one that you’ll never forget. I can’t wait to get back down to the “Bars End” and get the better of one of those crazy fast torpedos!

Size – 12 x 26″ – oil on board

Size – Oil on two 16 x 24″ panels

Size – Oil on two 16 x 24″ panels

Everyone who loves hopper fishing has one or two days of hopper fishing that are their measuring stick by which all other days of tossing these terrestrials are measured. My best hopper day happened in 2010 on the Bighorn River in Fort Smith, MT.  As we shoved off from the boat ramp, my friend Matt pulled his fly from the hook keeper and flicked it several feet away from the boat and began to pull some line from his reel. As he did this, we all heard a strange sound, and by instinct alone Matt set the hook on the days first 17” brown trout. I stood in the back of the boat marveling at what had just occurred, when I heard that same sound again… and I suddenly realized my own hopper had been dragging a few feet behind the boat… DOUBLE!!!  And it only got better from there, the crown jewel of the day, a 23” brown Matt landed late that afternoon!

Size – 16 x 20″ – oil on canvas

The Salmon Fly hatch is a hatch that moves quickly through river systems.. and if you are not well informed, or not on the water every day.. it is more than likely that you will miss it.  I have mostly managed to do so every year since I moved out west in 2007. My favorite day of fishing the Salmon flies was in Yellowstone National Park, on the Yellowstone River. The Salmon flies were everywhere. At any given time there were 4 to 10 of these giant bugs crawling on my shirt and hat. I did manage a few small cutties, but I think the fish had been feasting like crazy for the previous few days.

Size - 18 x 30″ – oil on canvas

Size – 16 x 36″ – oil on board

Chrome Steelies are one of the most exciting fish to catch on a fly. This painting is perfect for that odd space above a doorway.

This painting is in honor of all those pre dawn awakenings and aching shoulders it takes to properly chase these pearlescent bulldozers.

Size – 4.75′ wide – oil on 4 Canvases

Ever since I spent three days chasing striped marlin off of Baja, I’ve been fascinated with the deep mysterious blues of the ocean. In this painting a Sailfish is working it’s way towards the surface out of the darker depths below. The vivid colors and pattern on this Sailfish are just starting to come alive.

Size - 40 x 48″ – oil on canvas

The Mayfly is one of my favorite icons of fly fishing. In this painting, I actually drew the mayfly on masonite board and cut it out with a saw. I then painted a background to represent the surface of the water. The Mayfly is mounted 2.5” out in front of the circular background, making this piece a 3D original.

I’ve spent most of my life learning and perfecting how to paint polished, fairly realistic trout and fish paintings. But most people don’t realize that these polished paintings start as messy lively sketches on paper. This painting shows the finished painted Brown, as well as the two unfinished versions of the same fish.

Size - 24 x 26″ – oil on canvas

This painting was inspired as I sat on a bench next to the Yellowstone River one evening watching osprey hunt for fish. As I thought about how I might paint the scene, the child like imagination in me took over and a story played out in my head. I could just imagine a Bald eagle sitting in the dark, watching a fly angler twitch a mouse pattern across a likely run. Then when a nice brown finally strikes, the eagle takes advantage of an easy meal and steals the trout!

Size – 3′ x 3′ – oil on canvas

I decided I wanted to do some oil studies of the Paradise Valley, through which the mighty Yellowstone River flows, just south of my home in Livingston. I drove down any dirt side road I could find, up onto the benches and foothills, in order to photograph the valley and find inspiration for this painting. Through the course of the day I saw some beautiful scenery.. but the lighting was to intense and I wasn’t getting any photos that really got my painting juices flowing. I decided to call it a day and headed out to the main road, US 89 heading north back to Livingston. As I paralleled the Yellowstone River, I noticed a storm had settled on the Absorkee Mountain Range on the east side of the valley. We were in for a big thunderstorm. The intense evening light began lighting the scene in front of me, with the black storm clouds as the backdrop. I knew I’d found my painting and inspiration. I turned off at Mallards Landing, a campground and boat ramp with a great bluff overlooking the river. I’m sure hundreds of paintings have been done from that same vantage point.. but I don’t think it ever looked more beautiful then it did that early October evening.

Size – 18 x 24″ – oil on board