Vaughn Cochran is an artist, fly fisherman and conservationist. "I've always been an artist", says Vaughn, "but haven't always made my living at it. I've always been a fisherman, but haven't always been a fly fisherman. I've always been a conservationist, except when I didn't know any better."
A
native Floridian, Vaughn grew up in the art community of
St. Augustine and earned art degrees in ceramics and
painting at the internationally known and respected Art
and Printmaking Department of the University of South
Florida. Arriving in Key West in 1972, Vaughn started
his fishing career and also became an original member of
Jimmy Buffett's Coral Reefer Band. "It was a great time
to be in Key West", says Vaughn, "I'm not sure how I
survived."
Now retired from guiding, Vaughn became one of the most
respected fly fishing guides in the Florida Keys and
found plenty of artistic inspiration observing nature
while guiding his clients to meet the challenges of
saltwater fly fishing. For several years Vaughn fished
and painted in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and later
managed Costa Rica's most famous fishing lodge,
Parismina Tarpon Rancho. Recently Vaughn spent a year as
fishing manager at Belize's classic Turneffe Island
Lodge.
Vaughn's artwork has been shown in numerous galleries
and outdoor shows in the United States and has received many awards. His paintings and sculptures are held in private and corporate collections. Vaughn’s newest
work was recently featured in a one-man show at the
International Gamefish Association Fishing Hall of Fame
and Museum main gallery. "Although I still enjoy
painting the traditional fishing and seascape scenes
that I'm known for, my newest work is in the pop style
from earlier in my painting career. I started with pop
art fish and have moved on to other images and icons of
the fishing industry." These paintings are now available
as prints as are many of his more traditional scenes of
the flats he fished on a regular basis.
His love of fishing has also given him the opportunity to be the featured co-host and guide for several episodes of ESPN's morning line up of fishing shows, including "Fly Fishing America", "Fly Fishing the World", "North American Fisherman", "Back Roads" with Ron Shara
and several episodes of “Spanish Fly” with Jose Wejebe
in Belize.
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