ARTIST: Don Balke (North Carolina, born 1933)
NAME: Fishing Flies - Muddler Minnow
YEAR: 1991
MEDIUM: gouache on board
CONDITION: Excellent. Minor damages to corners.
SIGHT SIZE: 17 x 14 inches / 43 x 35 cm
BOARD SIZE: 21 x 19 inches / 53 x 48 cm
SIGNATURE: lower right
NOTE: This painting was originally featured on the Fleetwood First Day Cover of the U.S. 29c Muddler Minnow issued May 31, 1991. The flyfisher's cast snakes out across the stream, landing lightly on the water, with a Muddler Minnow clinched tightly to the nearly-invisible monofilament leader. As the swiftmoving mountain water catches line and fly, the Muddler is propelled along with the current, twitching through eddies and "swimming" seductively around underwater rocks. With its undulating deerhair and realistic shape, it proves to be more than a hungry Brown Trout can resist ... and the "Brownie" pounces on what it takes to be a minnow, only to find itself fast to the angler's rod and reel. As anyone who has ever used it knows, the Muddler Minnow is a superbly effective, versatile and durable "streamer" -- the flyfishing term for a baitfish imitation. Developed by noted fisherman Don Gapen, it has come to be a universally-accepted method of mimicking any of the many squat, brown bottom-dwelling minnows. Gapen's original design has been widely adapted and modified, but the original Muddler is tied on a long-shank hook of heavy wire, with a small portion of wild turkey tail feather tied in as a tail, and a length of gold tinsel wrapped around the length of the hook. Over this are tied a small clump of fox squirrel tail fur and a "wing" of turkey tail. Finally, a clump of deer hair is added and clipped into the bullet shape of a minnow's head. The flash of gold, the realistic movement of the materials, the somber color and the natural shape combine to make the Muddler Minnow a classic trout-taker.
PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation.
CATEGORY: antique vintage painting
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BIOGRAPHY:
Balke, the youngest of ten children, grew up on a farm in northern backcountry of Wisconsin. His family was completely dependent on the land; they tapped trees to make maple syrup; used crosscut saws for logging and horses for their farmwork; they raised crops for themselves and as income. His upbringing instilled in him a love of nature and wildlife. He received his first art award in a Wisconsin state-sponsored art contest while at elementary school for a painting of a black bear roaming in the woods. After serving in the US Army, he married Barbara Schernick[citation needed] and they moved to Chicago where he enrolled in the Academy of Fine Arts, now known as the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. During his time at the Academy, he specialized in still-life paintings. After graduating, he was hired by a Chicago illustrating studio and eventually moved back to Wisconsin where he worked as a commercial art director. He won many awards for his work as an art director and illustrator. On his own time, late in the night, he painted and developed his skills as a wildlife artist. After 17 years, he left his work as an art director to devote himself completely to watercolors and wildlife art. By 1979, they had six children and a home in the village of Thiensville, Wisconsin. Balke's love of nature took him to the NC mountains where he bought 200 acres in McDowell County and built a home. In 1985, a gallery was added and the Don Balke Wildlife Gallery was opened. In 1987, his work was chosen as the illustration for the official NC Zoo poster. In 1992, the United States Post Office issued a series of first-class postage stamps portraying five different species of hummingbirds designed by Balke. Balke travels to Africa, Australia, Ireland, the Caribbean, and across the 50 United States for inspiration and research. His wife, Barbara Schernick Balke, does extensive research on the animals and their habitats in preparation for the paintings and does much of the photography on research trips. He is best known for his detailed and realistic watercolor paintings portraying wildlife in their natural environment. In 2000, he transitioned to a more impressionistic style with oils portraying scenes from Yosemite National Park in California, Ocracoke Island on the Outer Banks, and Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.