Franck Maes a Professional Hunter with Unexpected Talent

Franck Maes a Professional Hunter with Unexpected Talent


Professional Hunter Franck Maes with an incredible Elephant hunted in Tanzania, with tusks measuring a 2.44 meters (8 feet) in length.

I thought that I would share these paintings and hunting pictures that one of our member posted in the photo gallery.

Franck Maes is a renowned and respected PH in Africa as well as an African wildlife artist, a rare combination of skills. He shows his love for Africa, its' wildlife and people in everything he does.

Although he is French, Franck Maes was born in Brazzaville, Congo in 1962 and spent much of his childhood there as well as in Cameroon and Kenya. It was a hardship for him to go back to France to complete his studies. He was only nineteen when he returned to Africa to become a professional hunter, which is more than a job to him, it is his passion.


Franck Maes as a little boy in Brazzaville Congo in 1963


Franck Maes in Tanzania in 1972

He apprenticed in Senegal for a couple of hunting season from 1982 to 1983 and started his career as a professional hunter in North Cameroon as an assistant in 1983. After spending 4 years in Cameroon, he returned to Senegal for a couple of seasons then went on to Tanzania. For the next 20 years Franck guided for a prominent hunting operator in Tanzania from 1988 to 2008. He stepped back from hunting for a couple of years and found himself pursuing a new endeavor.


Professional Hunter and Wildlife Artist Franck Maes. His maasai friends named him “Mbwa Mwitu” which means “Wild Dog”, it is this name that inspired his signature.

He has been marked with an indelible print after spending a quarter-century in the bush walking amongst the wildlife and living with the maasai, whose language he speaks fluently. Through his paintings, he wants to show and share his passion for the wild animals he has encountered and the tribes who still live according to a traditional and preserved way of life.


Professional Hunter Franck Maes with one of his long time tracker Bawe in Tanzania.

Franck has recently returned to hunting in Cameroon where he now offers hunting safaris on foot with the hunting outfitter Frank Vannier.

Check out Franck's website at www.franckmaes.fr, he does custom paintings and enjoys creating very large framed paintings such as the life size elephant painting shown below.


Elephant Taille Reelle - Life Size Elephant by Wildlife Artist Franck Maes. Franck next to his large painting, no wonder he calls them life size!


Hunting Elephant in Tanzania


Lion Taille Reelle - Life Size Lion by Wildlife Artist Franck Maes. Franck while painting his life size Lion.


Hunting in Tanzania


Ditos les Amis


Hunting Elephant in Tanzania


Upepo mbaya - Taken by the Wind


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Amarko - Hippo in Maasai


Hunting Buffalo in Tanzania


E-Muny - Rhino in Maasai


Hunting Leopard in Tanzania


La Baignade - The Swim


Hunting Buffalo in Tanzania


Faru eupe - Rhino in Maasai


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


La Charge du Lion - The Lion Charge


Hunting Leopard in Tanzania


Le Buffle de Franck - Franck's Buffalo


Hunting Elephant in Tanzania


Le Graal


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Rencontre - Encounter


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Uta n'doto


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Simba Jike


Hunting Elephant in Tanzania


Migration


Hunting Leopard in Tanzania


Faru kali - Rhino in Maasai


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Ulugaru geri


Hunting Lion in Tanzania


Ulugaro Kito


Le Soliste - The Soloist


Moranes na kuja


Sikulu les Ditos


Ibor - White in Maasai


Kissinga


L'arrivee des Moranes - Arrival of the Moranes


Ceremonie Maasai - Maasai Ceremony


Coco


Enk-Opiro - Plume in Maasai