Anthony Pedro

Profile Bluebill Decoys

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Wooden silhouettes appealed to hunters who required large numbers of lightweight, transportable waterfowl decoys that were made cheaply and quickly using only sawed boards and a fastening point for line and anchor.  

Fifty to upwards of two hundred “flatties” were set out at a time along coastlines in the paths of incoming flocks of birds, their dark colors contrasted against the water pulling in diver ducks such as scaup and scoters from the sky, wings cupped into shotgun range.

Silhouettes are still in use today although they are now mass produced and made of water-resistant, lightweight and ridged corrugated plastics.

I made this pair of bluebills wanting to mimic a pair of nineteenth century working birds. The hardware is rusted, and the drake’s waxed line is faded, broken and has been retied, the hen’s line has been replaced by a stiff monofilament, both being tied to 6-ounce lead mushroom anchors for mooring in soft mud.

Each measure 14” from tail to breast, 16” wide and 7 ¼ inches from the top of the head to the bottom.

FOR SALE

In Progress

Whistling Swan

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A wood, wire, and cloth swan I have made to imitate a popular decoy design used by market hunters in the late 1800’s around the Eastern Shore of Virginia and the Carolinas.

Due to the scarcity of carving wood, creative waterfowl hunters resorted to the use of wire, sail cloth and a small amount of wood to fool great numbers of birds over the Atlantic Flyway.   

Whistling Swan

Materials - Basswood, Wire, Muslin, Acrylic Paint, Carpet Tacks, Cotton Trim Tape, Fluted Wooden Dowel, Staples, Button Top Hole Plugs

Measurements - 15” Long, 7.5” Wide, 7” High at Tail, 14.5” High at Head

References

Hillman, Anthony. Carving Classic Swan and Goose Decoys. Toronto, Ontario: General Publishing, 1987.

Streetman, Al. 10 Wire & Canvas Decoy Patterns For Carvers. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing Ltd, 2000.

 

Attempt at a Full Body Fish Cast

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My first attempt at a two sided, full body cast of a chinook salmon jack. The molding went well, but it completely fell apart during the casting process. For whatever reason the two halves did not bond. I am not sure if it was due to the sloppy shelf or inadequate curing time. However, the mouth plug and fins did come out well, and I consider that a small success.

Coho Salmon Replica

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A handsome coho salmon I molded, then cast in resin. The eyes were set, and after minor sculpting, it was painted with an airbrush using acrylic paints, opaque and iridescent. I colored it as it would look migrating from the vast salt ocean to its final destination in a small coastal stream.

Bluebill scaup plaster reference cast

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A plaster cast of my first bluebill. A drake I killed (and later ate, gizzard, heart and all). Taken near the Columbia River.

DIY Fish Head Mount

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Borax + water and a lot of drying time yields a pretty nice, do it yourself head mount with a lot of personality. Another nice ling out of Depot Bay, Oregon.

Images on Polaroid film.

Molding and Casting a Starry Flounder for Reference

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I caught this small Starry Flounder while Surfperch fishing. It was hooked deep and wouldn’t have survived if I had released it, so I decided to keep it and make a half cast for reference.

Cleaned and dried.

Placed in bedding material to midline.

Plaster negative dried and sealed.

Resin positive.

Yucatán Fishes of Sea and Cenote

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A selection of watercolors from my artists residency in Mexico.