William Boissevain


William 'Wim' Boissevain is an Australian painter of Dutch extraction born Willem Geoffrey Boissevain in New York, son of Gideon Walrave 'Gi' Boissevain who was in the Dutch diplomatic service.
He studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, London and the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris.
He arrived in Australia in 1947, became naturalised in 1949, and has established a studio at Glen Forrest in the Darling Range near Perth.
From 1951 to 1955 he taught drawing and French at Wesley College, Perth, later at Perth Technical College.
His portrait of the art dealer and benefactor Claude Hotchin was an entry in the 1957 Archibald Prize.
Since 1964 he has held exhibitions in many major galleries in Perth and Sydney. His paintings are avidly sought by collectors.
His first wife Rhoda Elsie Boissevain, also a fine portrait painter, was runner-up in the Rubinstein Prize for portraiture 1960. She also taught at Perth Technical College in the 1960s. The National Library of Australia has her 1955? portrait of Katharine Susannah Prichard.

Awards