Thoughts

I am very lucky to be able to combine two passions, painting and flyfishing.

I have been drawing and painting my whole life. I was about thirteen when my first illustrations were published in a history book. During high school I sold cartoons and I painted, mostly landscape, and mostly in oils. While attending Sheridan College, U of Toronto and U of Guelph I was able to experience a very wide breadth of studio areas. At that point switching to acrylic paint was the timely thing to do. I do miss the feel, and smells, of oil paint however I don’t miss the clean up and time restraints. During my teaching years I continued to paint and draw cartoons, as well as touch on some sculpture, pottery, and photography.

I started fishing (seriously) at the age of four and fly fishing at about twenty. One doesn’t fly fish because it is easier, but because there are artistic elements to it. Casting a fly line with its rhythms is like dance, and tying flies and building rods have creative elements of craft and art. When flyfishing you become part of the natural environment. Either you are wearing waders and are standing in the flow of the river or you are in a kayak or canoe floating in a lake. The flyfisher needs to be aware of fish food sources like insect life (in all its species and stages from nymph to adult), minnows, crayfish, and when during the season they appear on the fish menu.

Combining these together is a joy. I carry a waterproof camera in my fishing vest, which seems to go swimming with me at least once a year….trout streams are very cold by the way. While fishing I will observe an element of the landscape that triggers an “Aha” feeling. I take a bunch of photos and then at home distill an “image” from them. Then, while I am painting, I relive the emotions and feelings I had at the time. These emotional memories, which I try to pass along to the viewer, are of great importance to me. It is all part of a story telling process allowing me to share a part of my experience with the viewer.