DISCOVERING THE AMAZING WORLD OF TIM WALKER'S STORY BOXES

DISCOVERING THE AMAZING WORLD OF TIM WALKER'S STORY BOXES

✦ Tim's story boxes are inspired by his love for theatre

Most Great Port Macquarie locals know Tim Walker as the friendly Marketing Manager of Hastings Co-operative. But Brilliant-Online has discovered another side to Tim that not many may know. He is a very talented artist and has been exhibiting at the Wauchope Creative Hub.

Originally from New Zealand, Tim came over to sunny Australia when he was 21. Now at the age of 54, he has made his home at the picturesque Bonny Hills seaside village with his wife and two teenage sons.

Tim is very much involved in his community and has been involved with many groups over the years as a creative.

Tim is a musician, and he plays the guitar. He studied acting when he was young and first performed in theatre when he was only 14 in New Zealand. He participated in many different shows in theatre, and now he has turned to art and is creating magical story boxes via the medium of paper tole.

What are Story Boxes?

Paper tole is an old term used to describe a photograph or painting that is layered. Tim’s art takes this concept and takes it further by turning it into a montage of layers. It becomes a three dimensional magical box that takes you into an intriguing world, as if you were Alice who has fallen down the rabbit hole.

Tim's story boxes are made from paper, cardboard, leather and finished off beautifully with paint. Each creation tells a story, either created from a memory or a landscape. The story boxes are also inspired by his love for theatre. There is a story in every single one of them.

You will often see images of the ocean, bush land and rainforest in Tim's story boxes. From the mountainous and valley landscape of his New Zealand heritage to the sometimes barren and wild landscape and oceans of his Australian home, his artworks come from nature both in idea and material.

All Tim needs at the start of each creation is just a pencil and paper. He thinks about what he wants to depict, perhaps a landscape, a forest and he simply lets his creativity run with the idea. He sketches a drawing, which is then cut out and shaped.

The initial form is housed in a cardboard box to frame the 'story'. Then the paper cut outs are layered to create a scene. Paper and leather are used to create different textures in the 3D design. Colour is then added using paint which can be intricate depending on the size of the story. He continues to add more drawing cutouts and colours to set the scene.

Tim sometimes works on several different story boxes at the same time. As the artwork continues to grow during the process, it is like a progression of ideas evolving from Tim’s initial vision. Each story box is a living, organic creation.

An Artistic Life

For Tim, art is his calming antidote to a busy work and home life. He appreciates the time he can spend creating in his home workshop. When he is creating, he has his trusty Spotify in the background to play classical music and he is off into this creative world. Just him and his paints and materials. And a magical world waiting to be discovered and created.

Tim's list of talents is endless and he never stops growing his creativity. He is a musician, he plays the guitar, he sings, he has done acting on stage and also taught acting and improvisation, he is an artist making his beautiful story boxes, he sculpts with clay, he is a writer who has done a children's book and plays...no wonder Tim is such a busy man!

At the Wauchope Creative Hub, Tim is proud to be involved with other likeminded creatives. For Tim, this is one

of the best things that has happened in the community and he is quite bowled over by it.

“ I really couldn't praise them enough. To have a venue like the Hub where an artist can be highlighted is absolutely terrific! There are so many artists and musicians for that matter, looking for venues at the moment, at Wauchope we are very lucky to have such a wonderful space for artisans to display and sell their works.”

With so much to offer, it is probably just a matter of time before we will find Tim teaching at Wauchope Creative Hub, sharing his love for his art of his story boxes with many others. We are certainly looking forward to Tim's play becoming a reality and we really would not be too surprised if in the near future Tim calls us to say he has found yet another creative outlet!

With a community that is so supportive of the arts, one can say that artists like Tim have truly found home.