About Jack
Jack Hobe is a wildlife artist, avian biologist and educator from Bucks County, PA. He enjoys sharing the wonder of the outdoors and the practice of nature sketching with the public through art workshops.
Jack’s passion for birds grew from trips in his youth to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Kempton, PA, and Cape May Bird Observatory, NJ, where his grandparents took him each year to hike and witness the autumn raptor migration. He grew up reading field guides for fun, memorizing North American bird species’ names and plumage. He is able to identify North American birds by sight and sound, and plans on writing a field guide to birds in the future.
Having drawn from a very young age (around 4 years old), Jack credits God with providing his artistic talent and interest. He refined his skills largely through trial-and-error as well as repetition, making a drawing almost every day. Today, Jack specializes in using watercolor and digital mediums to create realistic illustrations of birds, plants and other natural subjects. He completes commissioned artwork for conservation and wildlife organizations to use on merchandise and signage. He also sells products featuring his original watercolor nature illustrations through his business, Jack Hobe Nature Art. Visit his online shop to purchase bird-themed stationery, fine art and gift items.
Jack enjoys combining his two interests–birding and drawing–by taking a notebook and pencil with him in the field and documenting the birds he sees from life. He aims to spread the joy of nature sketching to others through workshops and tutorials he teaches in partnership with nature centers, zoos, wildlife sanctuaries, and arboretums in the Greater Philadelphia area.
Jack has Bachelor of Science in Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Sciences from Oregon State University, with a specialization in Ornithology and Interpretation. In his spare time, Jack enjoys a plethora of hobbies and interests, including maintaining lots of bird feeders and birdboxes, planting native plants to attract wildlife, building scale model aircraft, running model trains, and collecting Star Wars merchandise. He resides in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.