Bob White's artwork has graced over 30 books, adorned magazine covers, and illustrated seemingly countless hunting and angling columns in magazines like Fly Rod & Reel, Sporting Classics, Gray's Sporting Journal, TROUT Magazine and more. For many, Bob's work has been just as outsized an element in the stories that have defined our hunting and angling heritages over the last generation as the voices that have narrated them.
Bob is perhaps best known for his long-running partnership with renowned angling author John Gierach, in which the two collaborated on a bi-monthly column in Fly Rod & Reel magazine for the better part of three decades. Writing about their time working together, Gierach noted that "By the time Fly Rod & Reel unexpectedly went out of business in the spring of 2017, Bob and I had worked there for 25 years, had outlasted five editors, and had collaborated on 144 bi-monthly and later quarterly columns. We briefly discussed calling it a day at a quarter century, but neither of us felt like we were done, so we decided to try and keep the band together. We shopped ourselves around as a package deal and finally landed at TROUT Magazine, where we are now. I recently sent Bob the 152nd column nearly a year ahead of the print deadline. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with."
The body of work Bob has built over the years is expansive. Now, for the first time ever, a collection of Bob's paintings and drawings has been compiled in a voluminous, 280-page tome published by Stackpole Books. Titled The Classic Sporting Art of Bob White, the collection features over 246 annotated pieces of White's art, with introductions by John Gierach and E. Donnall Thomas and a foreword by Tom Rosenbauer.
We worked with Bob to select just a handful — a mere 20 pieces — of that work. They're showcased here, each with comments from the artist.
A Short Cast - Alphonse Island, The Seychelles
24 x 20 inches - oil on canvas
"One of the nicest things about painting fishing scenes are the places I get to visit to do my research. I could hardly say no when I was asked to join some friends and get reference material for a few commissions."
Musky in the Mist
18 x 16 inches - oil on canvas
"I have a lot of friends who chase river musky with flies, but most of us cast to them from boats. My buddy, Fred, does it a bit differently. He likes to get into the river with the fish and stalk them in their element."
Waiting
24 x 20 inches - oil on canvas
Anyone who’s ever worked at an Alaskan fly-out fishing lodge will tell you that the most difficult days are those when the ceiling and visibility hover tantalizingly around the, ”I think we can make it!” mark.
Icon - Alaskan Brown Bear
36 x 30 inches - oil on canvas
"Until you’ve actually experienced it, you’ll never know what it feels like to suddenly come to the realization that you’re not at the top of the food chain. The first time it happens can be a very humbling experience."
The Supplicant
18 x 14 inches - oil on board
"A good friend sent a photograph and asked if he might commission me to do a painting. Since the photograph came with payment, I could hardly refuse and a deal was struck. The truth be told, ice fishing isn’t exactly what I describe as a passion of mine, but the scene held all the elements for a wonderful painting; mystery, suspense, and a strong, low winter light, casting a long blue shadow, while bathing the distant shoreline in a warm glow."
Goose Decoys
22 x 18 inches - oil on canvas
"I love to paint color and light reflected, especially in an atmospheric landscape. The pools of reflected light dancing on the dark reflection of the hunter are both challenging and rewarding to render."
Brown Trout Head Study
6 x 6 inches - oil on board
"Sometimes it’s the small studies that really turn out the best. While this tiny painting would hardly fill up any space on a wall, there’s a commanding freshness to it that I really love — a freshness that’s sometimes hard to achieve in larger paintings."
Getting ready for Tarpon
19 x 17 inches - pencil on archival paper
"The anticipation that grows daily before any fishing trip is always half the fun of the experience. This is particularly true if the trip is to some far-off place where the fish are big. This drawing was done before our annual trek to the Florida Keys to visit with friends and chase tarpon."
Early Birds
36 x 28 inches - oil on canvas
"Where I grew up, 'bird hunting' meant chasing bobwhite quail. My father was a bird hunter, and I believe it was his crowning glory in life to have a son he could name, “Bob White”. We recently visited his grave, in the small town of Lively Grove, where my mother was born. The small church cemetery is surrounded by the very fields we’d walked together a half a century earlier. As I opened the door the truck, a covey of bobwhite quail began to call all around us."
The Bridge Pool - III
11 x 9 inches - oil on board
"Sometimes, successfully executing an illustration assignment requires a bit of creativity on the part of the artist. I had great reference photos of a friend fishing a stream in the Minnesota Driftless, but the story called for a bridge. No worries; I transported the bridge from a river in Argentina and plopped it into the scene!"
Dark Water - Rainbow Trout
24 x 20 inches - oil on board
"Good friends have a delightful way of circling back into our lives. One day, a few years ago, I received a package from a fishermen I’d guided years ago in Alaska. Inside was a photograph of a beautiful rainbow being admired one last time, before its release. My friend had caught the fish and taken the shot just before I let it slip from my hands. I thought those hands looked familiar."
Odd Duck
14 x 13.5 inches - watercolor on archival paper
"It was rare to shoot a scoter where I guided duck hunters in Alaska. It wasn’t a particularly colorful bird in its plumage of subtle greys and black, but the bill was a fascinating shape and looked to be carved of ivory, which had been dyed yellow, red, black and white. I thought this scoter to be an elegant bird and decided to paint it. It was hung on the side of a shed at the lodge and I sketched it that evening, when the low autumnal light created fantastical shadows."
Glide
44 x 32 inches - oil on canvas
"There's a time, late in a summer evening, when shadows overtake the land and colors begin to mute. It's during these few minutes that I find myself particularly quieted. Speech becomes unnecessary, even irreverent. I drift on a reflected sky and measure meaning in the water that drips from my oars."
All Business
8 x 10 inches - oil on board
"I was very fortunate to be invited to my friend’s duck club in the Sacramento Valley, in the shadow of Sutter Butte. The weather was balmy; not exactly what you’d like for hunting, the light was good and I got plenty of reference material for painting. This small panel of my friend’s retriever was painted as a gift to thank him for a wonderful experience."
The Way It’s Remembered
24 x 20 inches - oil on board
"What we remember about our time afield has little to do with the number of birds we shoot. Rather, our most poignant recollections are made up of the little things; the warmth of a low autumnal sun, the sound of golden leaves twisting in the breeze, and the ripe smell of an aspen copse in the evening. If we’re luck, there might be the heady aroma of a spent shot shell or two, and the weight of a well-shot bird in our vest. And, always, we’ll remember the love of our dog."
Color and Light reflected - Brown Trout
30 x 24 inches - oil on canvas
"I love to paint fish; each one of them is a jewel and a joy to render. This is particularly true when the scene includes water and reflected light. This little brown trout was caught in the Minnesota Driftless, and a photograph captured seconds before it’s release."
A Place in the Choir
8.25 x 9.5 inches - pencil on archival paper
"We all love our bird dogs, but in some very rare instances, the bond that develops between a man and his dog transcends comprehension. Such was the case, with my friend, and his English setter. Few words were ever spoken in the field, sometimes with just a brief look, came an understanding. A friend like that is hard to lose."
Just Watching
12 x 10 inches - oil on board
"What’s remembered about a day in afield, or in the marsh has more to do with what we’ve seen and whom you’ve shared it with, than the number of birds hanging over our shoulder. If I’m walking out at the end of the day with an empty bird strap, I often think to myself, all of the fun… and none of the work!"
The Last Ptarmigan
16 x 18 inches - oil on board
"After 16 summer seasons in Alaska, we’d decide to make a go of it with my artwork and start a family. This pair of ptarmigan were taken on my last hunt as a guide. Our Gordon setter, Mac, found them in the high tundra, on a windblown mountainside, well above the timber line."
Hazy Day in the Driftless
36 x 30 inches - oil on canvas
"My good friend John Gierach and I often share a bit of time on the water, and of course, I occasionally paint him doing what he loves to do. Many of these painting are used to illustrate, “ Convergence”, our collaborative column in TROUT. Others, like this painting are used as cover-art for his books."
The Classic Sporting Art of Bob White is available from Bookshop.org, Amazon, or wherever books are sold. 300 limited edition signed copies are also available at bobwhitestudio.com.
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