Self taught Australian wildlife artist Robin Wingrave was born in Brentwood, England in 1968. Growing up in rural England Robin’s love of the outdoors grew tremendously along with his fascination of the natural world around him. With this deep passion for nature, he studied wildlife behaviour, their features and characteristics which allow Robin to represent his subjects correctly.
Moving to the tropical rainforests of Northern Australia in 1984 Robin embraced his new surroundings and became more prolific with his art. He would spend countless hours in the rainforests sketching his surroundings and the birds and animals he encountered.
Robin held his first successful solo exhibition in 2000 at the World Primatalogical Conference in Adelaide. Then, in 2002 Robin travelled to the US for a series of lectures about his art and wildlife experiences in the rainforests of Far North Queensland Australia. The lectures were held in major zoos including the Rhode Island and San Diego Zoos.
At this time in his career, his intricate works were solely graphite pencil, however, this would change in 2005. Robin was encouraged to move into colour by fellow artist favoured by David Attenborough - internationally acclaimed bird illustrator William T. Cooper. Under William’s tutelage, despite the difficult transition, it was one he did not regret. In 2006 he produced his first full colour illustrative map for “Quest for the Tree Kangaroo” published by well know author Sy Montgomery. This took him to the enchanted cloud forests of New Guinea in search of the unique animals he would include in the book. In 2010 he would illustrate maps for “Kakapo Rescue” also written by Sy Montgomery.
In 2009 Robin swapped his tropical lifestyle for a more temperate one, moving to the island state of Tasmania. In March of 2012, Robin was featured in Australian Artist magazine with his work making the front cover. Now settled in Tasmania he was able to study not only the abundant wildlife but also the magnificent scenery. Combining the two into his work he was asked to be the "Emerging Artist" for the 2013 Deloraine Art and Craft fair which was the most successful exhibition of his career. In the same year, he worked closely in collaboration with a Danish scientist to travel to Rodrigues, a remote island east of Mauritius where he drew and painted giant land tortoises that had been reintroduced back onto the island.
In 2018 Robin had his third solo exhibition in Hobart titled "Moments in nature" which depicted Tasmania's iconic wildlife in their natural settings.
Working in oils and watercolour, Robin’s work is renowned for precise and intricate details, coupled with a serene cohesion grounded in a powerful informed narrative. Robin currently undertakes commission work for national and international clientele, along with private tutoring from his home studio in the small idyllic country town of Karoola.