Meet Brandon Finnorn: The Creative Force Behind The Bonnie Fly. Hailing from Mobile, Alabama, Brandon Finnorn is the talented artist behind The Bonnie Fly. With a growing following on Instagram and Facebook (@thebonniefly) and a popular Etsy shop, Brandon brings a blend of Southern charm and serious painting skills to the fly fishing community. We caught up with him to learn more about his journey, inspiration, and what keeps him hooked.
BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF
Full name: Brandon Finnorn
Home Country: Mobile, Alabama, United States
Website: Thebonniefly.etsy.com
SoMe: @thebonniefly (instagram and facebook)
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into painting?
I grew up fishing along the Gulf Coast, mostly on Dauphin Island, AL. We started on a pier fishing for speckled trout, jack crevalle, and redfish. Eventually we had a family boat and explored into deeper water, catching king mackerel, snapper, and everything in between. Through this experience I really fostered an interest for biology watching the local wildlife, fishing, and exploring the beach.
As I grew older, I kept my interest in biological sciences alive in studying it in college and eventually into medical school. But, as I progressed through medicine, I realized it wasn’t something I wanted to pursue for the rest of my life. Shortly after graduating in 2016, I decided to leave without much of a plan for the future.
As I struggled with what to do next, I decided to sketch in my free time. And like the margins of every notebook I’ve ever owned, it was mostly sketches of the fish we caught and memories on the water. As the attention grew for my sketches, I decided to start a career in fine art and illustration in late 2016 and really haven’t looked back for 6 years. It’s developed into a very enjoyable full time career splitting time between freelance work, doing design work for major brand and companies, and my developing my own original paintings.
Have you developed a specific painting technique along the way?
The great thing about this career is that from year to year, even month to month, there is so much to learn about different media. I think that’s where it parallels the most with having the discipline to get through my previous pursuit of medicine. At the moment, I would say my style is still developing in oil painting and charcoal. But my main focus is getting better with good texture, abstract shapes, and composition. I do prefer my work to end up exactly as I intended, reflecting a moment I’ve had in the outdoors. More recently, I have started focusing on recreating much of my wildlife and outdoor photography in a more painterly way.
What has compelled you to paint fish and fly fishing motives?
Painting subjects and moments that I’ve experienced while fly fishing or exploring the coast feels like it gives me a second chance to immerse myself in great memories. I think it’s very hard at times to describe waking up at sunrise and the sensation of the perfect calm you can feel in the open space. At the same time, getting to see true wild things interact, like fish busting on bait, gives you a sense of awe that painting allows you to attempt to recreate.
How did you get started fly fishing and why?
I remember wanting to move on from fishing with bait and conventional tackle and learn more about new fishing techniques in high school. It felt like the natural progression from someone who loves to learn, and at the time I felt like I had already had my fill of conventional tackle experience. When I graduated in 2008, my dad gave me my first fly rod as a gift before going off to college. It was an 8 wt and I’ve used it ever since. It’s caught bonefish, steelhead, and redfish and has remained my go to rod year after year.
What is it about fly fishing that intrigues you?
Fly fishing feels very similar to learning new art techniques. There is always something more to explore. It also gives you the opportunity to travel and pursue fish anywhere on the globe.
How do you split your time between fly fishing and painting?
Self employment gives me the advantage to pick and choose my days of fishing. If I know the weather is going to be nice, I work longer hours on other days or weekends to make sure I can be on the water. Fly fishing is a way for me to collect more reference photos too. So, over time I’ve gotten to use it as a tool to collect thousands of references no one else can see but me.
In your opinion, do fly fishing and painting complement each other – and if so how?
You can’t be very good at fly fishing or painting without knowing the importance of fundamentals. I think both complement each other in many ways, but there is a degree of introspection you need with both to know what works and what doesn’t and when you stink.
Has fly fishing helped you become a better painter – or vice versa?
I think the greatest benefit of fly fishing is how it has affected my painting through photography. I carry my Nikon camera with me everywhere I go, boat, beach or kayak. Through learning how to manipulate light, composition and subject matter, I think it changed the way I approach painting. You learn more about where to add your deepest shadows, contrast, and highlights to the areas you want a viewer to focus. Everything about the way I paint, photograph, and fish is usually very scientific and structured.
What are your aspirations as a fly fisher?
I would like to travel more with fly fishing and experience more environments in a DIY setting. We often take guides at times in new areas and they are a lot of fun, but I really enjoy learning a fishery on my own.
Do you have any cool projects coming up; fishing- or art wise?
As my business has grown, I’ve started pushing away from my digital painting work and towards doing more and more original work as it grows in popularity. This year is going to be heavily focused on oil painting and learning more techniques from some of the masters in the craft. I also have been expanding upon my design course for freelancers looking to learn shirt design and expand their audience by learning how to market their work to the public.
Any advice to fellow fly fishermen, who aspire to do fish art?
Find parts of the fishing experience that inspire you and try to recreate them in your own way. It started with my own fishing photos for me personally. If you want to do it full time like I do, you have to approach it with a relentless discipline. So find artists who inspire you in any field, not just fishing, and learn as much as you can. I usually dedicate 1-2 hours over coffee in the morning to learn something new before even sitting down to get tasks done. 6 years of consistent learning pushed my work further faster than I could have imagined.
