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Guy Harvey’s Top 50: The Artist Picks His Favorite Paintings

The world-renowned marine game-fish artist shares favorites from a career spanning decades.

By Doug Olander

Updated: December 20, 2014

Dr. Guy Harvey Courtesy Guy Harvey

Guy Harvey is many things, nearly all of them related to the ocean and his love and appreciation of that environment. Dr. Harvey is best known internationally as a prolific and talented painter of marine animals, his interest in marine biology (in which he holds a Ph.D.) and his countless hours of underwater observation leading to an obsession with accurate detail. By 1988, Harvey was widely recognized as a top game-fish artist in the world.

Harvey is also one of the staunchest advocates of marine conservation on the planet. In 1999, the artist/diver/cinematographer/explorer collaborated with Nova Southeastern University in Dania Beach, Florida, to establish the Guy Harvey Research Institute, one of only a handful of private organizations dedicated exclusively to the science-based conservation of marine fish populations and biodiversity.

You can read more about Harvey here.

Sport Fishing is honored to share with our audience this exclusive gallery, not merely of 50 Guy Harvey paintings, but the 50 favorites picked by the artist, with a comment from him on each. It’s also worth mentioning that a portion of all Harvey’s art sales go to the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. Reproductions are available for most images here or call 954-581-0073.

BALL OF FIRE (18×15 inches, watercolor; 2008)

A single striped marlin on Pacific mackerel. Guy Harvey

Guy Harvey painting barrier reef rendezvous

BARRIER REEF RENDEZVOUS (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1991)

Following my first expedition to the Great Barrier Reef this large painting was the result of seeing seven males escorting a giant female, riding near the surface swimming rapidly down sea. Guy Harvey

BEACH PATROL (30 x 24 inches, watercolor and acrylic on canvas; 1996)

Diving around the Island of Coiba in Panama, I saw lots of roosterfish patrolling the shallow reefs and boilers chasing mullet and creolefish. Guy Harvey

BLACK BEAUTY (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1996)

One of the most dramatic scenes i witnessed from the Piñas Reef is a black marlin clobbering schools of bonito. I painted this large piece after diving with free-swimming, teased-up black marlin in Australia and in Panama. Guy Harvey

BLACK JACK (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2005)

On the Piñas Reef, Panama black marlin plunder big schools of Pacific jack crevalle and rainbow runner. Guy Harvey

BLACK OUT (5 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2009)

Straight out of the Piñas Reef at Tropic Star, Panama the biomass of fish is amazing. One of my favourite dive sites. This attracts all kinds of predators including the black marlin. This large original has done a tour of U.S. art museums with the Society of Animal Artists and is on the cover of the book Fishes of the Open Ocean. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

BLUE RUNNER (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2007)

During a dive expedition to Cocos Island, I saw a huge school of rainbow runner in a tight bunch with blue marlin harassing them. Amazing colours provided by the prey species and the blue marlin was lit up as well. Guy Harvey

BLUE MOON (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1998)

During 12 different expeditions to Venezuela, there were lots of opportunities to dive with free-swimming blue marlin. One day they were chasing the football-sized yellowfin that were working sardine baitballs, creating lots of drama. Guy Harvey

BLUE SKY (40 x 26 inches, watercolor on paper; 1996)

I reworked this original watercolor to show a giant blue marlin crashing a mixed school of blackfin and skipjack tunas. Guy Harvey

BLUE SLAMMER (15×12 inches, pen and ink; 2006)

Huge schools of skipjack tuna in the Azores are harvested commercially by hook-and-line boats. Blue marlin harass the schools constantly. Guy Harvey

BREAKING AWAY (40 x 26 inches, watercolor and acrylic on paper; 2005)

A whole ecosystem can be found under large logs floating in the Caribbean. Dolphin are always present. Escape for prey is not an option. Guy Harvey

CALAMARI DREAMING (40×30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2014)

I have dived with several hooked swordfish in the daytime to get reference. Never an easy thing to do. In Venezuela I had a close encounter with a 300-pound sword that was traumatic. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

CARIBBEAN ENCOUNTER (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2001)

Bull sharks are one of the main predators of tarpon in shallow water. The challenge is to witness the encounter. It can be best seen, although contrived, through fishing, in the Florida Keys or in Boca Grande Pass. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

CO-PILOT (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2014)

The ocean whitetip shark has been the subject of a lot of research by the GHRI in the Caribbean and Bahamas and now is the star in my latest shark documentary. Interactions with this species are always exciting and fast paced. They are always accompanied by a flotilla of pilotfish, jacks or runners. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

CURVE BALL (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2010)

A single white marlin takes on needlefish in Venezuela. Guy Harvey

DARK KNIGHT (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2013)

As the light fades in the late afternoon, a swordfish starts to head upward in the water column looking for prey. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

DEJA BLUE (40 x 26 inches, watercolor; 1989)

This large watercolor was my first limited edition print to sell out. Having spent a lot of time fishing for blue marlin in St. Thomas, Puerto Rico and Venezuela, I saw scenes of blues chasing tuna, whether skipjacks or yellowfin, on a regular basis. Guy Harvey

DEPTH CHARGE (11 x 4 feet. arcrylic on canvas)

Flotsam in the eastern tropical Pacific attracts tons of bait species, so large predators abound. In Panama I have had five blue marlin bites off one log. Guy Harvey

DOUBLE DOWN (11×4 feet, acrylic on canvas;1998)

Another large sailfish painting to replace Harmony for LEPs. This Panama scene with bullet bonitos (oi-oi) is from a dive right outside the Morros at the entrance to Piñas Bay at the height of sailfish season Guy Harvey

ENCOUNTERS (24 x 10 inches, ink on paper; 2007)

Bigeye tuna are large in Madeira but so are the blue marlin that have no problem taking down a 150-pounder. Guy Harvey

EYE OF THE TIGER (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2011)

The tiger shark is my favourite shark in many respects. The close encounters with tigers at Tiger Beach in the western Bahamas makes it the best place to film them. Bermuda offers similar encounters but in the open ocean. The tiger shark is the star in the documentary Tiger Shark Express and is the subject of ongoing research by the GHRI. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

FAIR GAME (4 x 2 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2011)

After my first expedition to Tiger Beach, I painted this piece showing a loggerhead trying to evade the rushes of a tiger shark. Loggerheads are a staple food item for tigers. Guy Harvey

HARMONY (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1996)

This was my first large sailfish painting completed, following several filming expeditions to Guatemala. Sometimes there would be 20 sailfish in the spread. Needlefish are the prey species of choice Guy Harvey

HAVANA BLUE (40 x 26 inches, watercolor; 2005)

This large watercolor painting captures the essence of Santiago’s two-day battle with the marlin. Guy Harvey

HOLY MACKEREL (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2104)

A single striped marlin on Pacific mackerel. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

HOO’S NEXT (5 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2006)

Black marlin on wahoo. The powerful black marlin can catch any ocean speedster. On the outer walls of the Great Barrier Reef big blacks chase wahoo, yellowfin tuna and scaly mackerel. Guy Harvey

JUST LOOKING (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 1998)

My first painting entered in the Society of Animal Artists tour of the USA. (The SAA is an international widlife artists’ group for which one must be nominated.) Guy Harvey

LIVE BY THE SWORD (6 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2008)

The mako and swordfish in an epic confrontation. Having dived with lots of makos and seen their speed and power at work, this 6 foot original is one of my all-time best images. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

LOG JAM (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2006)

Another large painting to replace “Depth Charge.” Similar subject matter from the eastern tropical Pacific, with flotsam attracting large dorado and rainbow runner attracting the attention of the blue marlin. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

MACKEREL RUN DOWN (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2007)

I dived with giant bluefin tuna in Nova Scotia before catching and tagging some granders there. These giants feed on mackerel and sardines in the fall before making epic trans-Atlantic migrations. Guy Harvey

MAGDALENA BAY MAGIC (40 x 26 inches, watercolor; 2001)

My first expedition to the Pacific coast of Baja was an amazing experience above and below the surface. Striped marlin and sea lions feeding on sardines, with frigate birds in a cloud above the action. Guy Harvey

MAKO AND WHITE (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2014)

I have been painting a lot of mako sharks recently because of the time spent with them in the water. Their prey includes billfish, such as this white marlin. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

MULLET RUN (6 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2000)

Each year the annual migration of mullet along Florida’s Atlantic coastline attracts large numbers of predators such as tarpon, several species of jacks and sharks Guy Harvey

OLD MAN AND MARLIN (24 x 18 inches, pen and ink on paper; 2006)

Pen-and-ink is the best medium to use for my favorite fishing story Guy Harvey

OLD MAN AND THE SEA (24 x 18 inches pen and ink on paper; 1983)

The end of the story as the Old Man beaches his boat with the marlin carcass in the dawn’s early light. Guy Harvey

ON THE WIRE (24 x 12 inches, watercolor; 1996)

This depicts a Hawaiian version of Hemingway’s famous story. Guy Harvey

ORCA BLUES (11 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1994)

In the Mediterranean, I dived with schools of bluefin tuna in the pens off southern Spain. Orcas would harass the schools of tuna as they moved through the Straits of Gibraltar. Guy Harvey

PREVAILING WINDS (15 x 9 inches, pen and ink on paper; 2004)

Sailfish in pen and ink. Guy Harvey

RED BULLS (40 x 26 inches, watercolor and acrylic on paper; 2008)

Redfish working the shallows in the Gulf of Mexico. One of my favourite fish to catch. Chasing mullet near oyster beds, these bull reds are great fighters. Guy Harvey

RUNNING BACK (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2007)

A blue marlin on a tight school of juvenile yellowfin tuna. Guy Harvey

SAIL AND SARDINES (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2014)

Each year in January the sardines show up off Mexico’s Yucatan coast and so do the sailfish. I have experienced several filming and fishing expeditions diving with schools of sails feeding on sardines. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

SAILS UP (18 x 15 inches, watercolor; 2004)

Sailfish leaping off the Mexican coast. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

SCHOOL’S OUT (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2005)

Another scene from Mag Bay, Mexico, where striped marlin are working on small schools of sardines. The marlin are super excited and stripes are fluorescent against their dark bodies. Guy Harvey

SILVER KINGS (12 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 1996)

I spent two hours in the water at Robby’s Place in the Florida Keys looking at tarpon to get reference for this 12 foot X 4 foot painting. I spent more time on this painting than any other due to all the scale detail and the sea-grass substrate. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

striped marlin and frigates rf300ppi.jpg

STRIPED MARLIN & FRIGATES (40 x 20 inches, watercolor on paper; 2001)

The vertical version of my painting Mag Bay Magic, depicting a scene of Baja’s Magdalena Bay on the Pacific. Guy Harvey

SURF’S UP (40 x 26 inches, watercolor; 2002)

Along a black sand beach in Guatemala, the roosterfish would chase bait in the surf. In the background the volcanos were impressive. Guy Harvey

Guy Harvey painting tapon and egret mangrove

TARPON AND EGRET (18 x 15 inches, watercolor; 2012)

In Florida and throughout the Caribbean there are lots of mangroves, and tarpon frequent these waters. Bird life is always present and the interaction between species can be dramatic. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

THREE AMIGOS (18 x 15 inches, watercolor; 2003)

A trio of sails off Isla Mujeres. Guy Harvey

ULTIMATE CATCH (40 x 30 inches, acrylic on canvas; 2012)

Santiago handles the amazing jumps and runs of the giant blue marlin. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

VELA TANGO (5 x 4 feet, acrylic on canvas; 2012)

Another large painting with two sailfish working on needle fish off the Yucatan coast. (Original painting available) Guy Harvey

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