WIM de VOS – Artist, teacher, musician, mentor, brother & friend
A portrait of Wim de Vos with his work at Studio West End
For Wim, by Vicky Cooper
In your last days we visited you….
Like the artist thinking about your next artwork…
You described your final work…
How, where, when…
You would be buried….
An acrylic case made by friends
In the bush
Up a hilly rocky track
To a hidden mountain
A stand of trees that had black bark
A particular view across a Valley
A golden sunset
A rock with the Red Fox coat of arms
Also created by a friend
50 years I have known you
Sometimes distant
Sometimes close
I danced with your groupies
In Cloudland where
You played a red Fender
Those favourite songs
Neil Young, Focus, George Harrison
Beach Boys and so may more…
I danced with Opa
At the Dutch Club
I loved Oma’s apple pie
The paper flowers and the needle work
The smell of pipe tobacco
The Dutch jokes
Stories of WW2
I remember your first exhibition
Michael Milburn
Your time in Maastricht
My sister with the two boys and soon a girl
My sister is now another beautiful story
The boys are also creating new stories
And the girl is strong and confident
The world has not limited them
At seminal moments
I needed inspiration and support
You were there
With Doug…
Fellow teacher, artist and family
I for 50 years
Doug for 30….
You could be at times testing…
But you were also investing
Your energy, creativity, ingenuity and knowledge
There are so many years of art
Toowoomba, Flying Arts, McGregor…
Then West End and Adele
A collaboration that built a strong community
Each of us all has personal stories
Each will be different
But all of it rich
Just like your studio and apartment
The walls and corners of your life
Are jam packed with collections
Of moments
Sad or cantankerous
Solitary or social
Dedicated and creative
But your parting words to me now echo in my everyday
That I never stop making my art…
And I now reflect that if it were not for his support
I – and perhaps many others – would not have started…..
It is in this legacy that you will always remain
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Wim de Vos
VALE Wim de Vos 27/5/1947-8/12/2018.
Christene Drewe has written a post in the State Library of Queensland’ John Oxley Library Blog about Wim and the works that they have in their collection.
http://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/jol/2019/01/24/remembering-brisbane-artist-wim-de-vos/
SLQ-JOL Blog post by Christene Drewe
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Some images of Wim from events over the last few years…
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Wim presenting a long book at the Artists Book Brisbane Event – Griffith University Brisbane
Wim & Adele at ABBE Artists Book Conference July 2015
Wim showing the State Librarian Janette Wright his tunnel books at the Siganto Seminar 2015
Wim & Adele at the State Library of Qld’s Artists’ Book Fair 2015
The launch of the Bookplate collection with Anne Jolly, Helen Cole and Gael Phillips and others
A return to the ‘Band’ days at Studio West End
Farewell to ABSOE party, 23rd April 2016
A blog post about the ABSOE Studio and the NEW Studio can be found HERE
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At the NEW West End Studio – November 2016
The NEW West End Studio
Adele in the New West End Studio
Lunch is prepared at the New West End Studio
Lunch at the New West End Studio
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Wim will be back in the studio soon…
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The studio
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©Texts by Vicky Cooper . . . © All photographs by Doug Spowart
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In remembrance….
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wotwedid 
This is so beautifully relayed from the heart. He inspired so many but 50 years is amazing Vicky.
jan ramsay
December 13, 2018 at 7:53 pm
Thank you Jan….
Cooper+Spowart
December 13, 2018 at 8:12 pm
This is beautiful. I met him once but knew of his legacy/momentous impact. Peter
Peter Breen
December 13, 2018 at 11:08 pm
Thank you Peter…
Cooper+Spowart
December 14, 2018 at 8:42 am
A beautiful tribute.Thank you.
dinahmow
December 14, 2018 at 5:17 am
I never really knew Wim personally but I purchased a drawing of his called “Maastricht’ from his Michael MIlburn show in the 1980’s and I have lived with it daily since then, taking it back to the UK with me. I study it every day and my appreciation of his mastery draftsmanship as an outstanding artist grows and grows. I will be donating the drawing to the University Art Museum at U of Q in 2019, but I shall muss it very much. I did meet Wim briefly in 1995 on a visit back to Brisbane. He really was a brilliant artist by any standards.
Urszula Szulakowska
December 14, 2018 at 7:55 am
Thank you Urszula – my words only scratch the surface of who he was. Thank you for adding your insights — you are so right. Vicky
Cooper+Spowart
December 14, 2018 at 8:45 am
A beautiful and moving tribute. Thanks for sharing it.
Brian Rope
December 14, 2018 at 9:29 am
Lovely to see and read Vale Wim
malcolmenright
December 14, 2018 at 10:33 am
Thank you Wim, for the years of teaching at BIA when I was a student in Printing & Etching I still love it & never stop learning new things in Art.
Elaine Coggins
December 14, 2018 at 11:05 am
Thank you for aarranging and sharing this gorgeous selection of memories. For a very long time he contributed and shared so much with so many. He will be sadly missed.
Again , thank you.
Sharon
Sharon Lee
December 15, 2018 at 8:17 am
Bugger…
Roger Skinner
December 15, 2018 at 4:09 pm
Yes Roger …. A huge shock to us all…
Cooper+Spowart
December 15, 2018 at 6:12 pm
Great poem too
Roger Skinner
December 15, 2018 at 4:11 pm
Thank you for your beautiful tribute to Wim. I have many happy memories of his regular visits to SLQ over the past 24 years that I have worked here.How fortunate we are to be able to access his great works in The Australian Library of Art collections. We will miss his energy and love for the book arts -a very sad loss for the Brisbane book arts community.
Array
January 11, 2019 at 12:18 pm
Thank you Christene for your comment…. And yes we have seen many of Wim’s amazing works at The Australian Library of Art at the State Library of Queensland… It is fantastic that his work is available to be read and handled at the library.
Cooper+Spowart
January 11, 2019 at 3:26 pm