Source Article → Marlin Magazine
The Art of Angling
an interview with jack vitek
You may not know Dennis Friel personally, but if you’ve participated in a prominent fishing tournament over the past two decades, there’s a good chance you have a shirt donning his artwork. Since his teens, the proud South Florida native has masterfully captured the energy of sport fishing and the complex beauty of marine environments in a unique style that has been celebrated around the world. Driven by a love of the water and a desire “to do more than just paint,” Friel launched his “Connected by Water” podcast in 2019, a move that catapulted him from a marine artist to an industry influencer. He’s now using his global reach to raise awareness about issues threatening the marine environment and the way of life that he represents.
Q: Which came first, fishing or art?
A: Art came first for me, but they were definitely connected and still are. They feed each other. I’ve always been drawn to art, but growing up in South Florida, fishing was a way of life for my family. I first started with bass fishing in the canals, and then later hitched rides to the beach to fish from the piers. My family would rent a boat in the Florida Keys for a couple of weeks in the summer, and that is when I first started fishing offshore. Those early interactions are what gave me the fuel to start drawing and painting fish. In fact, when I went to high school and started fishing offshore on my friends’ boats, my “contribution” would be to paint them a picture of whatever fish we caught that day. Eventually I started fishing the South Florida tournament circuit, where I built relationships with both the tournaments and participating boat owners. While the tournaments wanted my art for shirts, the owners commissioned custom pieces. So for me, fishing and art have always gone hand in hand.
Q: When and how did your artwork transition from a hobby to a profession?
A: I will never forget the first time I got paid for my art. I was 17 years old, and Tred Barta was my first paying customer. Growing up in South Florida, I stopped by the old IGFA headquarters in Pompano Beach, where I was fortunate enough to share some of my pieces with former IGFA President Mike Leech. After talking with Mike, I agreed to donate a few pieces to the IGFA auction at The Breakers, and he reciprocated with an invitation. As luck would have it, Tred won the piece I had donated to the auction. I remember he shook my hand, gave me his business card and told me to call him after the weekend. I did as instructed, and he commissioned me to paint a swordfish and sailfish for him.
After that I began freelancing while at Ringling College of Art and Design. I continued my art “work” in that capacity for the next 17 years while I built a successful career in the music industry. I developed a name for myself in the fishing industry too during that time, working with tournaments and doing more commissioned painting. It eventually got to the point where I was working two full-time jobs and the workload just wasn’t sustainable. When I finally made the decision to pursue an art career full time, I already had a steady flow of work to get me started, which allowed me to open Dennis Friel Art Studios in 2013. From there things continued to take off, and I launched Connected by Water in 2019 with my business partner, Harris Katz.
Q: How did Connected by Water come about?
Q: You have created so many incredible pieces in your career. Are there any that are particularly special to you?
Q: How are you able to produce unique pieces after all this time? Do you ever struggle with “painter’s block”?
Q: What’s next for you and for Connected by Water?
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