An Interview with a Fishy Artist: Andrea Larko

An Interview with a Fishy Artist:Andrea Larko

From an early age, art has been a constant companion for Andrea Larko, providing a means of self-expression and comfort. Starting with a fascination for drawing perspective as a child, this passion grew and led to a diverse educational journey, from graphic design to illustration, and exploration of various artistic mediums. Yet, the most enduring love remained in 2D art, particularly drawing and painting. A return to Pennsylvania rekindled another childhood passion - fishing - which soon merged with art, sparking a career as an angling artist. Today, known for vivid, colorful depictions of fish and nature, this unique blend of passions has shaped a fulfilling and thriving artistic career.

By THE EDITORIAL STAFF

BIO//Full name: Andrea LarkoHome Country: USAWebsite: www.andrealarko.comSoMe: www.instagram.com/andrealarko/

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into doing artwork and fly fishing?

My earliest memory is learning how to draw perspective when I was 3 or 4, and art has stuck with me ever since. I always enjoyed being able to express myself through art and carried a sketchbook with me at all times from the middle of elementary school through college. While sitting through courses I’d constantly be doodling in the margins of my notebooks or making flipbooks to entertain myself. When deciding to go to college I knew I wanted to pursue fine art, but also be practical. I chose graphic design. It just wasn’t as artistic as I had hoped and ended up switching my major after my first year to Illustration. The change ended up being a great fit for me.

I took a variety of courses from sculpture, digital art, glass blowing and flame working, printmaking, screen printing, airbrushing, ceramics, oil acrylic and watercolor painting and even popup books and apprenticing as a tattoo artist; however, I still felt most tied to the 2D arts of drawing and painting.

Sketching is a release for my anxiety and became my therapy. I knew art was always going to be a part of my life, whether I could make a living off it or not. After graduating from Rochester Institute of Technology in upstate New York with a BFA in Illustration I landed a position as an artist for a company making figurines for gift shops. As an artist in a very conservative office setting though I didn’t exactly fit in. At the time, the recession also hit, and I decided to leave upstate New York to move back to Pennsylvania.

“Sketching is a release for my anxiety and became my therapy.”

Finding a position at a local screen-printing shop as an artist making custom designs and another at the local gazette creating advertisements kept me busy. Something I missed while living in the city was fishing, and I took back to the water soon after returning to PA. Finding solace on the water once again, I switched from spin to fly fishing.

Growing up fishing with my 3 sisters were always memories I cherished and being on the stream again tied me back to my roots. Little did I know, the one decision of picking up a fly rod changed the course of my life.

My free time from work was then spent either on the water chasing wild and native trout or tying flies. I made an account when Instagram was in its infancy, sharing the flies I enjoyed tying. From simple nymphs to classic Atlantic salmon flies and Spey flies to streamers and wet flies, I started gaining a following of others who enjoyed the sport.

Wanting some artwork for the walls in my new fly tying area I painted a tryptic in oil of a brown, brook, and rainbow trout. Sharing those paintings online started a chain reaction I also was not prepared for. About 6 months later, with art commissions stacking up 2 years in advance, I decided I was going to take a gamble and bet on myself. I quit both my day jobs a few months apart and started my career as an angling artist. 12 years later I’m still thankful for every day I’m able to call myself a full-time artist.

How did your vivid, colourful style evolve?

Since I can remember, I have always drawn with oversaturated colors. It wasn’t until my 3rd year in college I finally received an explanation from an eye doctor appointment. While taking a color test they found I have a color deficiency. This seemed to explain my attraction towards creating with vibrant colors.

Unable to decipher pastels from gray soon had me realizing a portion of my wardrobe was in fact periwinkle or lilac, not in fact gray. Over the years I’ve had clients ask for more subdued colors, which is easy for me to change digitally by drawing a piece as I see it and then desaturating the colors in the editing process. I do still prefer vibrancy or grayscale though in pieces I create for myself or customers who let me take the lead. But my work has also evolved into more intricate designs and color schemes over the years.

Who or what inspires you to do artwork?

There are a lot of artists I admire and love for their work. However, I feel like my work is inspired more by emotion. Whether I’m trying to portray the feelings of being on the water with a fly rod in hand, working through a busy mind of anxiety or pulling myself from a dark mental place; artwork has been my outlet.

Many of my illustrations have hidden meaning with the patterns I choose or designs I incorporate. But I always enjoy hearing what others see in my more abstract work. I don’t usually share my perspective as to not stifle the viewers own interpretations.

What has compelled you to paint fish and fly fishing motifs?

The connection I have with fly fishing mimics the connection I have with my artwork on an emotional and therapeutic level. As well as lessons in patience, failures and successes, my art and fly fishing have both healed large parts of me and helped me grow in ways I didn’t even realize needed attention. They’re both humbling and uplifting at times. Between finishing a piece and knocking ink on it to getting a snag under a rock then into a tree, the frustration is a learning curve filled with many failures along the way. These lessons help me become a better angler, artist and dare I say a more down to earth person. If I don’t fish for long spans of time I feel as though a part of me is missing. The same correlation goes with my art. I, as most artists, have creative blocks, but the water will always be my second home. Fly fishing helps me find my way back to inspiration and create visual representations of my feelings being on the water.

What is it about fly fishing that i ntrigues you?

Fly fishing is hope. Hope in a world where it’s fleeting. That’s why I fly fish.

How do you split your time between fly fishing and painting?

Owning a small business takes a lot of time. Honestly, I’m not very good at managing the workload vs time spent outdoors. I know the more effort I put into my business the more I get out of it, so I do have an unhealthy habit of working until I burn out. Usually at that point I realize it’s necessary to get back on the water to reenergize, refocus and find my center again.

In your opinion, do fly fishing and doing art complement each other – and if so how?

Yes, I wholeheartedly believe fly fishing and art complement each other. The way a stream can clear my mind mimics the way drawing repetitive patterns and spending dozens of hours coloring a single piece of work can help me process the thoughts I sometimes cannot verbalize. Has fly fishing helped you become a better artist – or vice versa?

I believe both could be true. Although I know a lot of the basics of fly fishing, there is a lot of technicalities to it sometimes. I’m very much a trial-and-error artist as well. A part of that journey led to my Bob cartoon through the many, many mistakes I’ve made while teaching myself how to fly fish and the amusing things I’ve seen on social media.

I think being an artist makes me want to play more while I’m fishing. Whether it’s with fly patterns I made up to thinking maybe a fish would be sitting where I know they shouldn’t, I think it’s helped me think outside the box while I’m on the stream. Most fish outsmart me, but either way I have a fun time learning from my mistakes. My art is always evolving as well, whether it’s the media, my process or style, I just like to play around and see what happens when I try something new.

Again, most of the time it’s a failure but a failure to me in and of itself is a learning experience. It’s always an adventure on the water or in the studio.

What are your aspirations as a fly fisher?

My aspirations as a fly fisher are to just get out there. I have no expectations. I obviously don’t expect to catch a fish every cast, every run or even every outing. I just want to learn more. I believe there’s always room for growth and I’m always learning new things about fly fishing.

From dries to streamers and wet flies to nymphing; from bamboo, glass, graphite to Spey and switch rods; from the salt flats in Belize to the glacial water of the Kenai Peninsula to the brook trout sidewalk streams blue-lining in Pennsylvania, it’s all very humbling. Any day, evening or even half hour spent on the stream I consider a win.

Those few seconds before I release a fish everything in me feels aligned. I aspire to have that feeling of contentment more often.

Do you have any cool projects coming up; fishing- or art wise?

I’m always excited about my upcoming projects but, at the moment, I’m not able to disclose any of those coming out before my clients release them. As far as fishing trips I do not have any planned but hope to enjoy the wild trout in PA this fall.

Any advice to fellow fly fishermen, who aspire to do fish art?

I have two pieces of advice I can give to an aspiring fish artist. First is to not undersell yourself.

Your prices dictate your worth and taking a low offer or trade to “get your name out there” will not only undervalue your art, but every artists work as well. At the end of the day, giving away your talent for “recognition” is not respected and will be taken advantage of time and time again.

All companies obviously have a bottom line, but some try to get custom artwork for stock image prices. Do not sell yourself short. It’s okay to turn down companies you love and still support their brands, but you don’t have to lower your standards to meet their margins.

My second piece of advice is to not take things to heart. Critiques of artwork are necessary for growth, but criticism lies with every keyboard warrior. You need a thick skin to be an artist.

From work being stolen on a regular basis by people and companies you respected and support, to the backlash for being told you’re a sellout, you need to not take things to heart and know when to pick your battles.

There are a lot of thorns on this rose of being an artist and the more you try to grip onto them the more you’ll bleed. You need to get to know yourself well enough to not let all of the theft destroy your will to share new work online. It’s a risk. There’s no way around it. With AI, artwork online is even more in jeopardy and there isn’t any protection for artists yet from those kinds of threats.

The saying I’ve heard is “do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life”. I used to believe the saying, but the truth is you’ll work harder than you ever have, for less money, more stress and years of long nights that creep into seeing sunrises. But if you have the true passion to create don’t let anyone or anything stop you from pursuing your dreams. It’s all worth it to me, but don’t get me wrong, it was never easy.

I’ll take a sleepless night in my studio with my dog snoring next to me while listening to metal music and painting any day of the week over sitting in office cubicle working towards someone else’s dreams. After a decade I’m still pushing forward and reinventing myself. I keep going not only for my work, but to set a standard for every other artist after me with a passion to create and a fly rod in hand.