Alison Gilmour on Bringing Nature to Life Through her Photo-realistic Art
Alison Gilmour is a talented artist from Auckland, New Zealand, who captures the timeless beauty of nature in her photorealistic paintings. In this interview, Alison opens up about how growing up by the sea and her deep love for the ocean have greatly influenced her work. She shares her journey from her first acrylic painting to learning from the renowned artist Tim Wilson. Through her stories, we learn about her creative process, passion for capturing serene moments in nature, and personal experiences shaping her stunning artwork.
Alison was born in Auckland, New Zealand – in a picturesque seaside locale that fostered her love of the ocean and often acted as inspiration for her art. Through working with the renowned Tim Wilson and exhibiting in his exclusive gallery, Alison has increased her global profile, increased the value of her already very successful paintings, and continues to learn about her craft and life. Alison’s art captures the timelessness of the nuanced and textured beauty of the world around her. With delicate brushwork and bold colours, she creates timeless art with photo-realistic quality. Alison paints paradise as she sees it, filling the absence of civilization with the fullness of nature. The way light plays on pristine water, foliage, and sand draws her creative spirit. Paint to canvas, canvas to evocative memories, her heart on display. Alison’s painting journey started in 2001 with her first acrylic painting. She then went on to be represented by Palette, The Letham, Matakana, and Exhibitions Galleries before changing to oil as a medium at The Tim Wilson Gallery, where she was mentored by Tim Wilson, one of New Zealand’s most acclaimed landscape artists.
Artist Statement
The modern world is fast. Connected. Online. Everywhere & nowhere all at once. Nature, it seems, is a place we hardly recognize anymore. We forget how to call it by name & need to listen very closely to hear it calling ours. Yet, nature is the place I go to find myself time & time again. It always has been. The beauty of nature is what has always captivated me. It is why I paint. To capture the textures, patterns, light, shadows, & movement found in nature – to evoke a sense of wonder & calm simultaneously. Capturing a moment. Like the moment a wave, like a heart, breaks. Or in the tidal push & pull of a full moon shoreline. Or, in still life, the only motion is in imagined sunlight shadows as they edge across a day & fall upon a tree, flower, or scene. To capture a moment that would otherwise be fleeting, as if to bottle the feeling, serves as a reminder of how nature’s beauty can only be bottled in the mind & heart of a person who slows down just long enough to notice it. To create my work, I first get out in nature. Then I record the moments (whether in my mind, on film, or otherwise). Then I re-imagine the scenes by paring them down or enhancing them to suit imagination & reality concurrently. In my mind’s eye, all the world is a muse.
1. Alison, growing up near the beach in Auckland has greatly impacted your art. Can you tell us more about how that influenced your creative process?
For me, it is more about the passion of living near the ocean. All my life, I have been fascinated by the movement of water, especially the ocean. The way the sun shines through the waves as they curl and then crash, splintering light and foam everywhere. It is alive and free. As far as my process goes, I love to walk on the beach and have visited many places to feel in my space, breathe in the fresh air, and listen to the sounds of water and birdlife. I take my camera and take photos to capture these feelings, ready to transform the canvas into those feelings and atmosphere.
The modern world is fast. Connected. Online. Everywhere & nowhere all at once. Nature, it seems, is a place we hardly recognize anymore.
Alison Gilmour
2. Your paintings look so real like they’re photos! What makes you want to paint nature precisely, and how do you do it?
I have often wondered why!! It is innate, I think. That’s how I want to preserve an emotive moment in time. The best way for me to do this is to make them photographically larger than life. I hope they are better than photos, as they transform my emotions and thoughts into startling art. I do it technically by looking at my subject matter, watching how the light falls, and creating the light, dark, and hues that make it real. The image I have chosen is transferred onto the canvas or board, and then I mix up the colours as I go and concentrate on painting it exactly in my eyes. I trained as a graphic designer, so the precision of that must come out in my work. The intuitive way is translating with all my senses how I felt there or how I want the painting to be portrayed, usually wanting the viewer to feel happy, relaxed, or exhilarated.
3. Can you share your work experience with Tim Wilson and how working with him shaped your art?
Tim was an awe-inspiring, charismatic man as well as a Master of Light, who very generously offered to become my mentor, which was a huge honour for me and a dream come true. I was painting in acrylics, and he offered to teach me how to paint with oils, starting with watching him paint first and then drawing up a painting I had photographed, then going through the techniques stage by stage. I would watch him; then he would ask me to finish the stage in his style. It was a daunting process and very emotional with the fear of new, but it worked, and throughout the 12 years that he mentored me, I have developed it, which has made my work more realistic as I have gone along.
4. Besides landscapes, you also draw pets and animals. What makes you want to draw them, and how is it different from painting landscapes?
I have always drawn, so it feels easier for me than painting. I saw that I could create work with a pencil to sell. My first drawing after this brainwave was of my husky Ghost to see if I could make an uncanny resemblance to him. It worked, and after showing several people my work, I started getting commissions. I draw dogs mainly because I love them, but I have also painted cats and native New Zealand birds.
They are different from painting landscapes or the florals that are my present subject matter, as drawing is a much quicker process for me. I then found that it could supplement my painting income, which is an important factor for a career artist. I was also very happy to give people a realistic drawing of their pet, which somehow managed to capture the true essence of their beloved animal.
To capture a moment that would otherwise be fleeting, as if to bottle the feeling, serves as a reminder of how nature’s beauty can only be bottled in the mind & heart of a person who slows down just long enough to notice it.
Alison Gilmour
5. Can you share what working with Flagstaff Gallery and Mobile Art is like and how they’ve helped your art career?
Working with both these galleries is a relatively new experience for me. They have both been very supportive and try hard to sell my work. They have helped my art career by showing and promoting my work to get it out to a larger audience.
6. Can you walk us through a typical day in your studio and how do you create such peaceful scenes in your paintings?
After an early morning walk with my dog and coffee, I sit at my easel, which is all setup, ready to go in my sunny studio. I may play music, listen to a podcast, or listen to something interesting on the TV, but I hardly ever paint in silence. Sometimes, if I am engrossed in the painting, I may paint for eight hours in a session or maybe stop to get something to eat or drink quickly. I think the peacefulness in my scenes is because I love painting so much; it is my happy place.
Alison Gilmour’s art encourages us to slow down and appreciate the simple beauty of nature. Her journey from a seaside town to learning from Tim Wilson has helped her create stunning, photo-realistic works. As she continues to paint peaceful scenes, Alison’s art reminds us of the power of nature to inspire and calm us. To learn more about Alison, click the following links to visit her profile
