William Francis Robinson AO (born 16 April 1936) is an Australian painter and

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

er.

Early life

William Robinson was born in Brisbane in 1936. He attended Brisbane State High School and Ballarat High School. After graduating from secondary education, he began working as an art instructor. Robinson commenced

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

on 4 January 1955 with the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

serving as an Aircraftsman, service number: A115716. In his teaching career, Robinson eventually became head of the Painting Department at the Brisbane College of Advanced Education in 1982. In 1989 he retired to work full-time on his paintings.

Artistic Career

Robinson held his first solo exhibition at the Design Arts Centre, Brisbane in 1967. He rose to international prominence as a part of the exhibitions Australian Perspecta in

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

and The Sixth Bienniale of

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1986. The

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

has several of his works in their collection, as does the National Gallery of Australia and several smaller Australian galleries. He has won the

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, J. F. Archib ...

for portraiture twice: first in

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

for ''Equestrian self portrait'', then in

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

for ''Self-portrait with stunned mullet''. He has also won the Wynne Prize for

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes th ...

painting in 1990 (''The rainforest'') and

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

(''Creation landscape – earth and sea''). Robinson released a solo exhibition, Landscapes, which consisted of oil paintings showing fragments of the Australian bush in various perspectives. In 2009 Robinson was the subject of a documentary by filmmaker Catherine Hunter. "William Robinson: A Painter’s Journey" traces the places that have inspired the artist, from his early farmyard paintings to the 'Creation Landscape' series and, most recently, the quiet still life paintings inspired by the intimate surroundings of his Brisbane house and garden. In 2011, The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Art Museum curated a major retrospective exhibition ''William Robinson: The Transfigured Landscape'' which was opened by the Australian Governor General Quentin Bryce. There is an art gallery within Old Government House on the QUT's Garden Point campus devoted to Robinson's art, featuring many of his artworks, including some of his very first. In 2016 William Robinson was interviewed in a digital story and oral history for

State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...

'
James C Sourris AM Collection
In the interview Robinson talks to Vanessa Van Ooyen, Director QUT Art Museum about his art, his success at winning the Archibald Prize and his busy life as both a teacher and an artist.

References

External links

William Robinson digital story, educational interview and oral history
John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland, 6 February 2016. 7min, 30min and 2:10 hour version available to view online.
William Robinson Works of Art 2007
State Library of Queensland
William Robinson
at the Queensland Art Gallery
''Equestrian self portrait''
winner of the 1987 Archibald Prize
''Self-portrait with stunned mullet''
winner of the 1995 Archibald Prize
''Creation landscape – earth and sea''
winner of the 1996 Wynne Prize
''Professor John Robinson and brother William'' 1992

Grafico Topico's reviews of William Robinson's art
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, William 1936 births Living people 20th-century Australian painters 20th-century Australian male artists Archibald Prize winners Officers of the Order of Australia People educated at Brisbane State High School Wynne Prize winners Queensland Greats Australian male painters