Timothy Drever Robinson (1935 – 3 April 2020) was an English writer, artist and
cartographer
Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...
. His most famous works include books about Ireland's
Aran Islands
The Aran Islands ( ; gle, Oileáin Árann, ) or The Arans (''na hÁrainneacha'' ) are a group of three islands at the mouth of Galway Bay, off the west coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, with a total area around . They constitute the histo ...
and
Connemara
Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speak ...
, in the West of Ireland. He was also well known for producing exceptionally detailed maps of the
Aran Islands
The Aran Islands ( ; gle, Oileáin Árann, ) or The Arans (''na hÁrainneacha'' ) are a group of three islands at the mouth of Galway Bay, off the west coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, with a total area around . They constitute the histo ...
,
The Burren
The Burren (; ) is a karst/glaciokarst landscape centred in County Clare, on the west coast of Ireland.
Burren ...
, and
Connemara
Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speak ...
, what he called "the ABC of earth wonders".
Early life and education
Born in England,
he studied mathematics at
Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College (referred to informally as "Sidney") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1596 under the terms of the will of Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex (1531–1589), wife ...
.
Career
After a career as a visual artist using the name Timothy Drever, in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
,
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
and London, he settled in the
Aran Islands
The Aran Islands ( ; gle, Oileáin Árann, ) or The Arans (''na hÁrainneacha'' ) are a group of three islands at the mouth of Galway Bay, off the west coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, with a total area around . They constitute the histo ...
, off the coast of
County Galway
"Righteousness and Justice"
, anthem = ()
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg
, map_caption = Location in Ireland
, area_footnotes =
, area_total_km2 = ...
in the 1970s, and began a detailed study of the landscape of the
West Region, Ireland
The West is a strategic planning area within the Northern and Western Region in Ireland. It is a NUTS Level III statistical region of Ireland (coded IE042) under the Eurostat classification. It consists of the counties of Galway, Mayo and Ro ...
.
Robinson produced his first map of the Aran Islands in 1975 with a second edition in 1980, and "Oileáin Árainn", an accompaniment to the map in 1996. After his initial map of Aran, in 1977, he produced a two-inch map of the uplands of North-West Clare, covering
The Burren
The Burren (; ) is a karst/glaciokarst landscape centred in County Clare, on the west coast of Ireland.
Burren ...
, with a second edition in 1999. In 1981, Robinson began to turn his attentions to
Connemara
Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speak ...
, writing a pamphlet, later expanded into a book, called "Setting Foot on the Shores of Connemara". There followed a series of recurring articles in the
Connacht Tribune
The ''Connacht Tribune'' (''An Curadh Connachtach'') is a newspaper circulating chiefly in County Galway, Ireland.
The main regional newspaper for the county, the Tribune Group prints two titles every week - the ''Connacht Tribune'' on Thursday ...
under the title "Mapping South Connemara". In 1990, Robinson published his 1-inch map of
Connemara
Connemara (; )( ga, Conamara ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speak ...
with an accompanying gazetteer. Like the other two regional maps, these were published by Folding Landscapes, the specialist publishing house and information centre Tim and his wife Máiréad ran from their
Roundstone base.
In 1987 Tim and Máiréad Robinson won the first Ford European Conservation award that was given in Ireland, and they went on to represent Ireland at the Ford European Conservation Awards in Madrid the following year, 1988.
Tim Robinson was elected Parnell Visiting Fellow for 2011, at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He delivered the annual Parnell Lecture in February, 2011. Its title is ‘A Land without Shortcuts’, and it was published in the Dublin Review.
His two-volume study of the Aran Islands, ''Stones of Aran'', is a much-praised compendium of topographical and culture lore, described by
Michael Viney
Michael Viney MRIA (born 1933) is an artist, author, broadcaster, and journalist, based in Ireland. He was born in Brighton, England. Best known for his writings on nature, he has contributed to ''The Irish Times'' since 1962.
Career
In the 19 ...
as "One of the most original, revelatory and exhilarating works of literature ever produced in Ireland." ''Stones of Aran: Pilgrimage'' follows the form of a coastal exploration, while ''Stones of Aran: Labyrinth'' explores the interior.
His most recent work was the publication of a three-volume study of Connemara called ''Listening to the Wind'', ''A Little Gaelic Kingdom'', and ''The Last Pool of Darkness''. He was a member of the Irish arts organisation
Aosdána
Aosdána ( , ; from , 'people of the arts') is an Irish association of artists. It was created in 1981 on the initiative of a group of writers with support from the country's Arts Council. Membership, which is by invitation from current member ...
.
Robinson won two
Irish Book Awards
The Irish Book Awards are Irish literary awards given annually to books and authors in various categories. In 2018 An Post took over sponsorship of the awards from Bord Gais Energy. It is the only literary award supported by all-Irish bookstores. ...
: the 2007 Argosy Irish Non-Fiction Book of the Year for ''Connemara: Listening to the Wind'', and the 2011 International Education Services Best Irish-Published Book of the Year for ''Connemara: A Little Gaelic Kingdom''.
Liam Mac Con Iomaire
Liam Mac Con Iomaire (born 1937, Casla, County Galway – died 2019) was a highly respected Irish writer, journalist and broadcaster.
He was a newsreader on RTÉ. He was author of a number of books and some translations, mainly concerning Connema ...
and Tim Robinson won the 2016 Lois Roth Award for a Translation of a Literary Work for ''Graveyard Clay'' / ''Cré na Cille: A Narrative in Ten Interludes'', by Máirtín Ó Cadhain (Yale Univ. Press, 2016). Connemara: Listening to the Wind was also short-listed for the Royal Society of Literature’s Ondaatje Prize 2007 (awarded to books of any genre that evoke the spirit of a place).
Tim Robinson was the focus of a poetic film by Pat Collins, ''Tim Robinson – Connemara'' (Harvest Films 2011) with original music by Susan Stenger: "An exploration of landscape, history and mythology – this film acts as an intersection between writing, film-making and the natural world".
Personal life
Robinson died at
St Pancras Hospital
St Pancras Hospital is part of the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust in St Pancras, London, St Pancras area of Central London, near Camden Town. The hospital specialises in Geriatrics, geriatric and Psychiatry, psychiatric medicine.
His ...
on 3 April 2020 at the age of 85, as a result of
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
during the
pandemic in the United Kingdom. Robinson died two weeks after the death of his wife and collaborator Máiréad Robinson.
Tim was a maternal cousin of experimental physicist
Ronald Drever
Ronald William Prest Drever (26 October 1931 – 7 March 2017) was a Scottish experimental physicist. He was a professor emeritus at the California Institute of Technology, co-founded the LIGO project, and was a co-inventor of the Pound–Drever ...
and uncle of acoustic ecologist and sound artist
John Levack Drever
Principal publications
*''Map of Árainn'' (
Connacht Tribune
The ''Connacht Tribune'' (''An Curadh Connachtach'') is a newspaper circulating chiefly in County Galway, Ireland.
The main regional newspaper for the county, the Tribune Group prints two titles every week - the ''Connacht Tribune'' on Thursday ...
, 1975, and 1980)
*''The Burren: A Map of the Uplands of North-West County Clare'' (1977)
*''Stones of Aran: Pilgrimage'' (
The Lilliput Press
The Lilliput Press is an Irish publishing house. It was founded in 1984 by Antony Farrell, in County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country ...
, 1986)
*''Connemara: A One-Inch Map, with Introduction and Gazetteer'' (Folding Landscapes, 1990)
*''Mementos of Mortality: the cenotaphs of funerary cairns of Arainn'' (Folding Landscapes, 1991)
*''Conamara Theas: Áit agus Ainm'', Tim Robinson and
Liam Mac Con Iomaire
Liam Mac Con Iomaire (born 1937, Casla, County Galway – died 2019) was a highly respected Irish writer, journalist and broadcaster.
He was a newsreader on RTÉ. He was author of a number of books and some translations, mainly concerning Connema ...
(
Coiscéim
Coiscéim (; "Footstep") is a prolific Dublin-based Irish-language publisher founded by writer, historian and language activist Pádraig Ó Snodaigh in 1980. With over 1,500 titles Coiscéim have published the largest number of titles amongst the 2 ...
, 1992)
*''Stones of Aran: Labyrinth'' (Lilliput Press, 1995)
*''Connemara after the famine : journal of a survey of the Martin Estate by Thomas Colville Scott, 1853'' with introduction from Tim Robinson (
Lilliput Press, 1995)
*''Oileáin Arann: A Map of the Aran Islands, with a Companion to the Map'' (Folding Landscapes, 1996)
*''Setting Foot on the Shores of Connemara'' (
The Lilliput Press
The Lilliput Press is an Irish publishing house. It was founded in 1984 by Antony Farrell, in County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country ...
, 1996)
*''The View from the Horrizon'' (Coracle, 1997)
*''The Burren: A Map of the Uplands of North-West County Clare'' (Folding Landscapes, 1999)
*''My Time in Space'' (
The Lilliput Press
The Lilliput Press is an Irish publishing house. It was founded in 1984 by Antony Farrell, in County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country ...
, 2001)
*''Tales and Imaginings'' (
The Lilliput Press
The Lilliput Press is an Irish publishing house. It was founded in 1984 by Antony Farrell, in County Westmeath
"Noble above nobility"
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Westmeath.svg
, subdivision_type = Country ...
, 2002)
*''Connemara: Listening to the Wind'' (Penguin Ireland, 2006)
*''Connemara: The Last Pool of Darkness'' (Penguin Ireland, 2008)
*''Connemara: A Little Gaelic Kingdom'' (Penguin Ireland, 2011)
* ''Graveyard Clay'' (with
Liam Mac Con Iomaire
Liam Mac Con Iomaire (born 1937, Casla, County Galway – died 2019) was a highly respected Irish writer, journalist and broadcaster.
He was a newsreader on RTÉ. He was author of a number of books and some translations, mainly concerning Connema ...
), Translated from the original
Máirtín Ó Cadhain
Máirtín Ó Cadhain (; 1906 – 18 October 1970) was one of the most prominent Irish language writers of the twentieth century. Perhaps best known for his 1949 novel ''Cré na Cille'', Ó Cadhain played a key role in reintroducing literary mod ...
novel ''Cré na Cille'' (Yale University Press, 2015)
Exhibitions
Timothy Drever
*1963 Galerie Fuchs, Vienna
*1965 John Moores Exhibition: Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool
*1966 ‘Soundings 3’:
Signals Gallery, London
*1967 First Edinburgh 100
*1968 25 Camden Artists: Central Library, Swiss Cottage, London
*1968 ‘The Dreams of Euclid' and 'Four Multiple Cosmagnetics’, Lisson Gallery, London (with Ken Cox, Michael Ginsborg, Dom Sylvester Houédard, Peter Joseph, Li Yuan-Chia, Mira Schendel, Peter Schmidt)
*1969 ‘Four-colour Theorm’: Environmental art at Kenwood, London (with Peter Joseph)
*1969 Survey 69 New Space, Camden Arts Centre (with Ed Herring, Peter Joseph and David Parsons) Tim Robinson
*1997 ‘The Event Horizon’, 1997, curated by Michael Tarantino
*2005 ‘Distressed Map of the Aran Islands’, Vinyl, Cork 2005 Capital of Culture curated by Simon Cutts
*2010 ‘Distressed Map of the Aran Islands’, Map Marathon, Map Room of the Royal Geographical Society curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist
*2011 ‘The Decision’ The Hugh Lane
*2016 IMMA Collection: A Decade, IMMA
*2017 Coastlines, IMMA
*2018 Signals: If You Like I Shall Grow, Kurimanzutto, London
Collections
*Alberetina, Vienna
*Art Council of Great Britain
*Victoria & Albert Museum, London
*Tate Britain
*The Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA)
*The Royal Irish Academy
Archives
List for Tim and Máiréad Robinson's Archive at National University of Ireland, Galway
References
External links
Folding Landscapes websiteLibrary Thing, Tim Robinson
Reviews
review of ''Connemara: Listening to the Wind''by
Joseph O'Connor
Joseph Victor O'Connor (born 20 September 1963) is an Irish novelist. His 2002 historical novel '' Star of the Sea'' was an international number one bestseller. Before success as an author, he was a journalist with the ''Sunday Tribune'' newspa ...
, ''Guardian''
review of ''Rock of Ages''by
Robert Macfarlane, ''Guardian''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Tim
1935 births
2020 deaths
Alumni of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Aosdána members
Date of birth missing
Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in England
English cartographers
English expatriates in Ireland
People from County Galway
20th-century English male writers
20th-century English writers
21st-century English male writers
21st-century English writers
Writers from Yorkshire