Cathartes EcoArts: James Prosek

James Prosek was born in Connecticut and released his first book at the age of 19 in 1996. Trout: An Illustrated History incudes seventy of his watercolors of North American trout. As evident by his debut work, Prosek is a writer, artist, and naturalist. He has a lengthy list of high-profile organizations on his CV including The New York Times, Yale, National Geographic Magazine, PBS, and galleries across the country. He co-founded World Trout in 2004 with Yvon Chouinard, the owner of Patagonia to raise money for coldwater habitat conservation from the sale of T-shirts featuring his trout paintings. Prosek has published many books including, but not limited to: Joe and Me: An Education in Fishing and Friendship; Early Love of Brook Trout; Trout of the World; The Day Mother Left; Bird, Butterfly, Eel; and Eels.

My first introduction to Prosek and his work was a short few months ago, when I picked up the 2012 issue 3 of The Nature Conservancy Magazine. The cover story was Water Colors: Art and Conservation go together like paint on canvas, by Jason Kersten accompanied by photographs by Jason Houston. I am inspired that such a high profile and science-based international conservation organization like The Nature Conservancy is featuring artists. There is a long history of conservation-minded artists who are inspired by and wish to care for the natural world.

Prosek and his work is a wonderful example of how far-reaching and yet focused a career can be on creating art for conservation and adoration of the natural world. His own philosophy says it all: “For Prosek, painting and preserving nature are inseparable. ‘Without these sources of awe and inspiration, we would have no faith, we would have no spirituality, we’d have no art,’ he says. ‘They’re the sources of everything that we are. Without [nature], it would be a very pale and depressing existence.’ (Water Colors, 2012)” This philosophy rings true for many artists both past and present.

Prosek has a distinct personal style that makes his work recognizable and unique. His realistic representations of the species he features are delicate and intricate showing each scale on the side of a fish or the creases in the petal of a flower. His palate is vibrant and bold, especially when set against his typically start backgrounds. His composition and presentation recalls 19^th century natural history illustrations, but as he says of his own work, this work has another 100 years of history to include.

James Prosek’s website: http: //www.troutsite.com/index.html

The Nature Conservancy Magazine Article: http://www.troutsite.com/news/pubs_mag_0812_water_colors.pdf