About Tim

Tim Wilson was New Zealand's most successful landscape painter of the 21st century.

From his Queenstown home and gallery he painted, from memory, those same landscapes that now reside in discerning galleries and private collections around the world. Tim Wilson was an innovative self-taught painter with a highly successful career spanning more than 50 years painting New Zealand landscapes. Throughout his career he painted many different genres of landscape; from abstract to traditional to contemporary, and including Japanese and US landscapes. During his lifetime, he became one of New Zealand’s most successful living painters with the historic sale in 2016 of ‘Summer Rains, Doubtful Sounds Impression’ for $575,000 to the Royal Family in Abu Dhabi.

He painted from his memory and imagination. An imagination that can best be described as 'total recall' because Tim remembered everything... the smell, temperature, colours, form, light and textures... however it was not just a ‘photographic’ memory, he could recall how the energy or 'spirit of place' made him feel on every level. Back in the studio without the aid of photos or sketches he painted from this place. It was his ability to translate this extraordinary connection he felt with the landscape into paint that moves the viewer so deeply
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"I feel such a strong spiritual sense of belonging in these areas and am constantly drawn back to the fold."

Bio

Born in Palmerston North, Tim Wilson's first trip to the South Island was with his 5th form class during the August school holidays in 1970. As a 16 year old he vividly remembers his awe when travelling down the West Coast and through Haast Pass to Queenstown, thrilling at the power of the Landscape on his emotions.

The play of light on mists and the seasonal change within inspire such a wide range of emotions. It’s these emotions I aim to portray. I am not simply painting the landscape but the emotional response engendered by it."

A significant achievement throughout his journey as a painter was the development of an oil painting technique that made his paintings unique in the world. Although taking many years to perfect the exact effect he wanted, Tim truly mastered this in 2005 and became recognised worldwide for the innovation. From this year onwards the mastery of his art went to a completely different level. His unique paintings were made up of 30-40 layers of transparent and translucent glazes layered in such a way that, as light changed, the layers closest to the viewer appeared to disappear, revealing the depth of layers beneath. The viewer was able to see the light passing between layers almost akin to looking through a series of filters. This created an extraordinary luminosity in the work as well as a 3D effect. The result was both stunning and mesmerising as the work appeared to be as alive and real as an actual landscape as light changed. Of significance to note, earlier works completed before 2005 although equally captivating were not painted using this innovation and therefore reacted far less dramatically to changes in the light than his later works.
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"My first trip into the Matukituki Valley was a very difficult one. It was as if I was trespassing and being warned to go no further. An incredible sense of oppression and sadness prevailed. I was being judged in this place, dared almost to continue. Pushing on I came to a bend in the road and was rewarded with such an extraordinary vista filled with incandescent light. The Gods were in this place and I, a mere awestruck mortal, agog at such beauty."

"I found out not long after that this valley had seen much tragedy and wondered if that’s what I was sensing, knowing I would return to this place again and again to be tested. I feel welcome now, as though family."

"Painting the Matukituki, Wakatipu, Manapouri, Te Anau, Wanaka and much more of this remarkable country has taught me so much about myself. I feel such a strong spiritual sense of belonging in these areas and am constantly drawn back to the fold."

"I will be, when I am 90."