From early childhood Bill was given the gift to draw and paint. As a small boy his father taught him to fish and spend time in the mountains. When Bill moved to the Reno-Tahoe area in 1985, he decided to take his passion for art and fish and combine them into a career path creating original art pieces.
After attending a four-day workshop for Fish Taxidermy in Idaho from World Champion Jim Hall, Bill’s artistic talent soon began to be recognized in Fish Taxidermy competitions at local, state, national, and world championships. He has won numerous awards including First Place, Judges Choice, Best-In-Show, and three time winner Wasco Award for Most Artistic Piece. In 1995 Bill was awarded the prestigious Carl E. Akeley Gold Medallion for Best in the World Fish at the World Taxidermy Championships.
In a natural progression Bill began to devote his time to fish carving and sculpting. This lead to a Best in the World for wood carving.
Each art piece is a one of a kind original, signed by the artist and comes with a certificate of authenticity.
Bill Cooke Creative takes custom requests. Contact us to get more information.