Contents:                                
Upcoming Sporting Art
Events & Exhibitions:
February 2008~
The Flats: Fishing Thin Waters of the South
at the J. Russell Jinishian Gallery, Fairfield, CT. Featuring original paintings , sculptures and dioramas by Christopher Atkins, Al Barnes, Flick Ford, Glen Hacker, Richard Dana Kuchta, Robert Lagasse, Stanley Meltzoff, James Prosek, Don Ray, Arthur Shilstone, Mike Stidham, Kent Ullberg and others.

March 8, 2008~
Arthur Shilstone: Sporting
Art Modern Master
11-3 at The Bedford Sportsman, Bedford NY. Featuring new original works of art by Arthur Shilstone. Book signing and original art show at The Bedford Sportsman, Bedford, NY. Artist Arthur Shilstone will be on hand for this one day event to discuss his artwork, display recent paintings and sign his award-winning book, Flashes in the River.

March 22, 2008~
BIG: 50 World Record Fish
at Westport Outfitters, Norwalk, CT
Featuring original paintings and a presentation by Flick Ford on his book project with the IGFA, including fish painted to date.

Contact the gallery
for more information at (203) 259-8753 or sportingartnews@gmail.com

News from the Artists: 
We’ll start with Flick Ford, who has recently embarked on his new project of painting 50 significant All-Tackle World Record Fish that will be featured in a book to be released in fall, 2008. The book, with a working title of BIG: 50 World Record Fish (Greenwich Workshop Press, 2008), will be authored by noted historian, angler and author Mike Rivkin, who has an intimate knowledge of this subject. Mike is a long-time Representative of the International Game Fishing Association and has already written two fascinating books – Big Game Fishing Headquarters: A History of the IGFA and Angling and War-The Collision of Big Game Fishing and WWII.
Usually, Flick is busy throughout the calendar year fishing and painting the various fish species he catches along the way on waters from the northeast, west and south. This project presents Flick with quite a different tactic, as his research has taken him to the records library of the IGFA, in Dania Beach, FL, where he has studied and recorded these catches by various anglers from around the world to incorporate into his masterful paintings.

Among the species he will paint for the book are some favorites among anglers, such as Striped Bass, Brook Trout, Sailfish, Dolphinfish, Tarpon, Bonefish and Permit, to name just a few. There will also be some unusual species, such as Opah, Taimen and Tigerfish. Ever wonder what a 43 pound Rainbow Trout looks like?

Flick Ford
'IGFA Rainbow Trout'


Flick Ford
'IGFA Tarpon'

Flick Ford
'IGFA Striped Bass'

Flick Ford
'IGFA Brook Trout'

The J. Russell Jinishian Gallery will be the exclusive agent for the sale of all of the paintings in this forth-coming book and many of these wonderful works are already available – in fact, many have already sold! We will be hosting several events over the course of the year featuring the paintings and will hold a major exhibition upon the completion of the book. We will keep you posted as things progress.

Speaking of books, two of our prominent artists, Arthur Shilstone and Mike Stidham, are both featured among an elite group of sporting painters in The Fine Art Of Angling – Ten Modern Masters (Di Les Books, 2007), along with several other prominent contemporary sporting artists. The book has just been released and we will have copies available in the gallery.

Arthur Shilstone has been very busy painting for our gallery, as well as working on several commission projects. Arthur was commissioned earlier this year to create a series of paintings featuring a spectacular landscape
that has been preserved from the time it was purchased from Native Americans in the 17th Century. Arthur spent a day walking the property and photographing various locations, taking field notes and getting a feel for the ‘lay of the land’ – all part of what goes into every painting he creates.
The end result was a stunning
collection of paintings that

Arthur Shilstone
'Anticipation'

I have recently had several wonderful conversations with artist Mike Stidham, who continues to create wonderful underwater scenes of various species of fish in their natural environments. Mike creates his images in such a convincing way, that one can feel the water and the light reflecting from above on the fish and the ocean floor on his canvases. His oils are remarkable in how they capture this atmosphere and they really make you feel that you are right there with the fish in the water. His most recent painting featured here, Bad Day For A Crab is a great example of his ability to capture fish and their habitats. Additionally, Mike has been busy discovering new waters throughout the West and has also spent time in the Keys and Bahamas, and I am sure we will continue to see many paintings as a result of his various adventures. Much in the way that artist Stanley Meltzoff used to paint, Mike’s perspective of these fish comes from years of spending time on, and in, the water, chasing after these species. We look forward to what Mike will create next!

Mike Stidham
'Bad Day For A Crab'

Mike Stidham
'Working the Edge'

Speaking of artist Stanley Meltzoff , Diane Pogrant, Stanley’s widow, was diving this past summer off New Guinea and sprinkled some of Stanley’s ashes in one of their favorite dive locations, Craig’s Bite – Stanley’s legend lives on in the ocean waters! When Diane is not diving in exotic locations, she is busy finalizing the book on Stanley’s illustrious career, Illusions of a Fishpainter, written by Stanley himself.

This past August, Stanley Meltzoff and Flick Ford shared the spotlight in a major exhibition at the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum, as well as the Annual Past-Presidents’ Dinner of the Tuna Club of Santa Catalina Island. The events were both a great success and it was the first time either men’s work had been shown to this degree on the west coast. The one-month exhibition was covered by local television, radio and newspaper.

Stanley Meltzoff
'Shoaling Blues'

Artist Al Barnes, who many of you know and whose artwork you have seen gracing the covers and pages of Gray’s Sporting Journal, Sports Afield, Sporting Classics, Field & Stream and many others has recently rejoined us, after many years of not having a presence in our gallery. Al worked with us back in the Big Horn Gallery days and has now joined us again as one of our distinguished Sporting Artists. Al has been very
busy painting scenes of southern waters and his artwork will be highlighted in the gallery as part
of our feature on The Flats: Fishing Thin Waters of the South, which will be hanging for
the month of February. In addition to painting southern
scenes, Al has been busy painting

 riverscape scenes of many of the prized waters of the west. We are thrilled to have Al back on board with us and will keep you posted as new works come our way.

Al Barnes
'A Flash'

Al Barnes
'Hail Mary'

Artist James Prosek recently launched a year-long exhibition “Life & Death: A Visual Taxonomy" at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, in Ridgefield, CT. The exhibition, which opened on September 16, will hang until June 8, 2008. This is a milestone event for James and should you find yourself anywhere near Ridgefield, I encourage you to stop in and view this remarkable exhibition.

James was recently featured in The New York Times chronicling his fishing trip to Alaska with fellow angler, long-time friend and mentor Joe Haines – The same Joe Haines of James’ acclaimed book, Joe and Me, An Education in Fishing and Friendship.

Additionally, James has been commissioned by the Hammonasset, CT Chapter of Trout Unlimited to create a painting of a Farm River Brook Trout, a particular strain of Brook Trout, indigenous only to this water, as part of the chapter’s fundraising efforts. The painting has been traveling throughout the state for anglers to view and bid on, with a culminating event in early 2008.

James Prosek
'Residual Male Spawner'

Another name that has recently rejoined our ranks of Sporting Artists after many years of being away is drypoint, etching and watercolor artist Paul Niemiec, who worked with us both at Mystic Maritime Gallery and The Big Horn Gallery. Paul’s work, which has been featured in prestigious publications and books such as The Art of Monhegan Island, The Artist’s Magazine, Gray’s Sporting Journal, Sporting Classics, The Best of Watercolor 2, Monhegan, the Artists’ Island; A Gallery of Maine Art, Watercolor Magic, The Language of Literature, reflects his country upbringing and his deeply rooted interest in traditional American Realism. His themes are drawn primarily from personal experiences in upstate New York and coastal Maine, and typically deal with the effect of light and atmosphere upon color and value relationships in nature. Paul enjoys the challenge of working in varied mediums including watercolor, oil, mixed media, egg tempera and printmaking.

Paul’s professional affiliations with regional and national organizations include The National Watercolor Society, The Society of American Graphic Artists, The International Society of Marine Painters, American Society of Portrait Artists, The Central New York Watercolor Society. We are thrilled to have Paul back on board with us and have recently received many wonderful drypoints, etchings and watercolors here at the gallery.

We have many more great works of art from all of our Sporting Artists here at the J. Russell Jinishian Gallery, including Christopher Atkins, Robert Blazek, Peter Bowe, Keith Cardnell, Glen Hacker, Richard Dana Kuchta, Robert Lagasse, Nick Mayer, Don Ray, William Simpson, Kent Ullberg and others. If you find yourself near the gallery, I welcome you to visit, as we receive new paintings from this talented group on a regular basis. I will keep you posted on new works and events here at the gallery and always look forward to hearing from you regarding recent sporting adventures upon which you have embarked!

Tight Lines!
Fred Polhemus
J. Russell Jinishian Gallery – Sporting Art
sportingartnews@gmail.com

About Fred Polhemus