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Reel Trout Studio Artists Eric L Knowlton & Heidi Knowlton All of Eric's carvings are dedicated in loving memory to his father, Stan Knowlton (Nov. 1941 - May 2010). Without his influence, encouragement & provision of tools, none of these works would have been possible. Dad was the biggest promoter of Eric's carvings, carrying a stack of business cards with him all the time, handing them out on flights across country & wearing the shirt we had made for him with the studio logo. Dad retired after 37 years as a journeyman electrician, having built 7 houses and remodeled more in his spare time (not that there was much of it with raising 7 kids). He then helped his sons and daughter build their homes. He had a shop full of tools and a lumber pile full of uncompleted dreams. He taught us to build cabinets and furniture, too, but a devastating stroke in 2007 ended his ability to ever work with wood again. Some favorite quotes from Dad (Stan): "The difficult we do immediately. The impossible takes a little longer." “Don’t let fear of good judgment or success hold you back!” For Eric, carving and painting trout, salmon, char and grayling is a passion. He first learned he was an angler at an early age in Oregon, catching his first brook trout in a feeder stream to the Mckenzie river in the foothills of the majestic cascades. The saying goes that trout only live in beautiful places, and the scenic streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and mountains all served to inspire, just as did each fish that was caught. Eric's ancestry is a mix of wood workers with a rich English history (Knowlton, Kent, UK & Knowlton, Lac La Brome, Quebec), and Pacific NW native ancestry from his mother (Coos tribe, of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Siuslaw and Lower Umpqua). You might say that catching trout and carving them is 'in his blood'. Fortunately for Eric, he met and married Heidi, who shares his love of the outdoors and is very understanding of his passion for fishing and art. Together, they have created Reel Trout Studio, and Heidi was there to encourage and help through all of the learning phases, good or bad. She even helped build the new studio, which is next to the house. The inspiration to carve fish is a fish tale. That of one of the most beautiful wild rainbow trout Eric and his friend, Karl, had ever seen. Karl caught the trout while they were fishing a local Wasilla lake, and due to the long fight, it was not a candidate for release. It wasn't the largest trout, only 21", but it's bright colors and bullet shape were incredible. Eric prodded Karl to have it mounted, which Karl did. Unfortunately, the trout that came back looked NOTHING like the fish they remembered catching that day (it looked more like a trout zombie), and Eric knew with his years of wood working and airbrushing experience, he could do better. Stan, Eric's father, had always encouraged woodworking and taken his 5 sons to several events and classes to help get them interested. Back in the early 1980's, the Anchorage Fur Rendezvous had a class sponsored by a local wood carving club, the Alaska Last Frontier Woodcarvers. Eric and his father both decided to carve a loggers boot, which Eric's mother still has on display. Eric saw the future at a local wood supply store - a lifelike carving of a pair of rainbow trout. He was hooked! This led him to find Bob Berry's first book on fish carving, which was all done with a bandsaw for the pattern cutout and then using knives to carve the fish to shape. Eric still has the scars (one required 6 stitches in the middle of the night) from experimenting with different carving knives. There had to be a better, and safer, way. Along came the internet, and in the late 1990's, Eric found what he was looking for. Ed Walicki, a World champion fish carver, was offering videos and even in person classes of his techniques. From 2001 to 2008, Ed served as Eric's mentor and teacher. In 2004, Eric traveled back to Grayling, MI, to attend a week long class with Ed in person at Ed's cabin right on the 'Holy Water' section of the Au Sable river. Researching the fabled brook and brown trout was right out the back door. Ed was the master fish carver, in Eric's eyes, and losing him to cancer in 2008 was devastating. Other notable artists such as Dan Patterson, Ray Dodge, Dale and Ed Barrett & Ellen McCaleb have served to inspire. The National Fish Carvers Guild, a group started to further the art and knowledge of fish carving, has been invaluable. Eric's work has been featured in the groups newsletters a few times. Regarding competitions, Eric has just not found the time. The original goal was simply to carve a trout that would honor the live fish. The side benefit was creating a trophy that did no harm to the fish. But the demand for his carvings has never slowed down, which is fine with Eric & Heidi - they get far more joy out of creating art for the angler or collector than they ever could in a competition. In the end, the only one Eric is competing with is himself - he's never concerned himself with awards or titles. Not that he won't ever compete, and competitions serve their place, but there are no groups to participate with in Alaska, and most of the major group events in the lower 48 are held during the months when the family would rather be out enjoying Alaska's beauty. The final lesson learned from Ed and Eric's father is that our time here is short. Eric & Heidi thoroughly enjoy the carving process, getting feedback from each other as they create a unique sculpture. While Eric concentrates on creating the fish carvings and the wood working (bases, habitats, etc.), Heidi has developed many techniques for painting the habitat pieces. Together, they bring the carvings to life. Studio hours and visits: Due to our busy Alaskan summer, spring and fall schedules, we typically do not have open hours other than scheduled visits (by appointment) or scheduled classes (sometimes held off site). Please email us if you are interested in coming by the studio to see us.
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