Tweed artist Tina Wilson awarded Medal of the Order of Australia
A visual artist and graphic designer who considers the Tweed her “spiritual home” is making the region proud, having been recognised with an Australia Day honour. Read her story.
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An inspiring visual artist, children’s publisher and graphic designer from Uki in the Tweed has been awarded a medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her contribution to visual arts.
Ms Wilson said she was surprised and overwhelmed by receiving the award.
“This is one of those awards you don’t know you’re being submitted for,” she said.
“It is a real honour.”
Ms Wilson has worked as a visual artist and graphic designer for over 20 years, and has achieved a number of remarkable feats over her storied career.
She worked as a freelance illustrator for publishers in Sydney, before moving to Western Australia in 2000 where she met then premier Brian Burke and painted him for the Archibald Prize.
“My painting ended up costing about $1500 just to ship into a competition,” she remarked.
Later, Ms Wilson created WA’s very own national art prize – the Black Swan Prize for Portraiture.
The competition she started later went on to be called the Lester Prize, and is now the third richest portrait prize in Australia.
In 2011, Ms Wilson met her partner Matt Ottley, a finalist in the portrait prize. Not long afterward, they decided to go on a holiday to the Tweed and they were head over hills with the area.
“As soon as we got here I fell in love with the mountains, with the forest, with the beauty of the area” she said.
After 10 years Ms Wilson stepped down from running the Black Swan prize and settled in the Northern Rivers to pursue her art.
“It made me have a craving to return to my own creativity … for me this area is like my spiritual home”
Ms Wilson has recently been commissioned to do four artworks for the new Tweed Valley Hospital set to open later this year.
“My artwork is going in the palliative care ward which is something I find really special”
“(Knowing) your artwork is going to be hanging on the wall to help bring people peace at the final stage of their life”
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