Art, angling and altruism: creating works for a cause

My mum said I produced my first serious artwork at age six. It was a charming rendition of the famous Jaws scene where Robert Shaw gets devoured by the big fish as the boat sinks. It split the critics, with half congratulating the gory realism and the balance questioning whether a good psychologist was in order. I was just creatively exploring the horror and fascination I felt watching that scene. Today, I still use art as a medium to express the feelings I have when I’m moved by something. Like fly fishing, for example, because I never fail to be inspired by the places it takes me, the people I meet and things I see on the water.

Me and my daughter playing with pencils

I started learning to fly fish when I was about nine year-old. In the early days, I spent a lot of time on lakes in northern England and particularly enjoyed the evening rise. The hope of some good surface action was exciting, but it was the diving house martins I especially loved. I was dazzled by their aerial agility as they skimmed hatching insects and I would go home and madly try and capture my memories on canvas or paper. When I finally caught my first trout, a hard-fighting rainbow trout that I knocked on the head and smoked, I immortalised it in one of my first watercolours.

A little house martin study

My childhood bedroom became littered with my works.  A sculpture of a barn owl I’d sneaked a look at when scoping water at dusk, an energetic acrylic painting of a diving kingfisher I saw on a little stream, sketches of my fave horses I’d pat on route to places. I just loved the outdoors and fishing simply fed my passion for the natural world and helped me develop my talent for expressing it. It culminated in winning a prestigious county art prize at aged nine for a African savanna scene of lions hunting zebras I’d watched on David Attenborough’s Life on Earth series.

The teenage years and early adulthood saw my creative and fishing career dwindle thanks to a few wholesome and not so wholesome distractions. Things changed when I immigrated to Australia in 2010. In a new wave of optimism, I decided to rekindle the two things from my old life that have brought me such joy in my new one. I joined Fitzroy Painting art school and began learning some of Victoria's best fly waters before training and qualifying as a Certified Casting Instructor in 2019. Today, I’m working on a creative project that brings the best of these worlds together for a good cause.

my original hand drawn trout series 2023

I’m creating exclusive, hand-drawn, art-works to raise money for a charity close to my heart - Casting for Recovery. I’ve been volunteering with them for several years, taking part in their inaugural retreat and their most recent one in March. It was my favourite fishing experience this year because the courage, kindness and camaraderie among everyone was life affirming. In May 2023, CfR became an official Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) registered charity and Deductible Gift Recipient. To encourage donations, I produced my first original drawings of a brown, brook and rainbow trout with all proceeds going to Casting for Recovery.

unvieling my series at the Victorian Flyfishers Assocation 2023 christmas dinner

I unveiled my first original trout series at the Victorian Fly Fishers Association 2023 Christmas Dinner and it was a terrific result thanks to the generosity of the club. I was overwhelmed by the warmth and kindness of members and special shout out goes to President, Simon Joel, for his enthusiasm and support of my endeavors. He ended up being the successful bidder for all three art-works and we raised $1,600 for Casting for Recovery. I believe my trout found a good home at his fishing lodge in Tasmania.

Giant Trevally. One of three species to feature in my 2024 original series

Right now, I’m busily finishing the final piece of my 2024 series. This year, I’m focusing on bucket list pelagic species I dream to tick off when cash and opportunity collide! However, researching them, capturing their incredible features and hearing the stories of those who’ve caught them is inspiring enough (for now). So far, I’ve completed a giant trevally, a bonefish and I’m half-way through a permit.

I hope to unveil the whole project in all its glory at the end of the year and will release further details about this when available.

In the meantime, I have limited edition prints available of my 2023 trout series and would welcome talking with anyone interested in purchasing. All profits go to Casting for Recovery. Hit me up at: charleymayflyfishing@gmail.com