Stephen Wiltshire facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Stephen Wiltshire
|
|
|---|---|
Wiltshire receiving an MBE for services to art
|
|
| Born | 24 April 1974 London, England
|
| Alma mater | City and Guilds of London Art School |
| Occupation | Artist |
Stephen Wiltshire (born 24 April 1974) is a British artist. He has a special talent called savant syndrome, which means he has amazing abilities in certain areas. Stephen is famous for being able to draw detailed city landscapes from memory after seeing them only once. His incredible artwork is known all over the world.
In 2006, Stephen received an award called the MBE for his contributions to art. In the same year, he opened his own art gallery in London.
Early Life and Discovering Art
Stephen Wiltshire was born in London in 1974. His parents were from the Caribbean. When he was three years old, he was diagnosed with autism. At that age, he did not speak. Sadly, his father passed away in a motorbike accident that same year.
When Stephen was five, he started attending Queensmill School in London. There, he showed a strong interest in drawing. At first, he drew animals and cars. He still loves American cars and knows a lot about them. Around age seven, he became fascinated with drawing famous buildings in London. After seeing pictures of cities damaged by earthquakes, he started drawing his own detailed imaginary cities.
In 2015, it was reported that people outside his school noticed Stephen's talent. When he was eight, he got his first art job. He drew Salisbury Cathedral for a former Prime Minister, Edward Heath. When he was ten, Stephen drew a series of London landmarks. He called it the "London Alphabet," with one drawing for each letter.
In 1987, Stephen was featured in a BBC TV show called The Foolish Wise Ones. A collection of his drawings, titled Drawings, was also published that year. From 1995 to 1998, Stephen studied art at the City and Guilds of London Art School.
Stephen's Amazing Career
Stephen Wiltshire has a unique ability. He can look at a place just once and then draw a very accurate and detailed picture of it from memory. He often draws entire cities after taking only a short helicopter ride over them. For example, he drew four square miles of London after one helicopter trip. His drawing of 305 square miles of New York City, which is nineteen feet long, was based on a twenty-minute helicopter ride. He also draws imaginary scenes, like St. Paul's Cathedral surrounded by flames.
Stephen's early books include Drawings (1987), Cities (1989), Floating Cities (1991), and Stephen Wiltshire's American Dream (1993). His book Floating Cities was a best-seller.
In 2003, an art show of his work was held in London. It was called "Not a Camera: the Unique Vision of Stephen Wiltshire."
In May 2005, Stephen created his longest memory drawing ever. It was a panoramic view of Tokyo on a 32.8-foot-long canvas. He finished it in seven days after a helicopter ride over the city. Since then, he has drawn other major cities like Rome, Hong Kong, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dubai, Jerusalem, and London on huge canvases. When he drew Rome, he included so much detail that he even drew the exact number of columns on the Pantheon.
In October 2009, Stephen finished his last panoramic drawing in this series. It was an 18-foot memory drawing of New York City, which he calls his "spiritual home." After a 20-minute helicopter ride, he sketched the view of Manhattan, the Hudson River shoreline, the Financial District, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and Brooklyn. He worked on it for five days at the Pratt Institute in New York City. This amazing artwork is now displayed at the Empire State Building on the 86th-floor observation deck.
In 2010, Stephen drew a panorama of Sydney to help raise money and awareness for Autism Spectrum Australia. He also visited the Bermuda National Gallery. There, his donated drawing of Hamilton sold for over $22,000. In June 2010, his oil painting Times Square at Night was sold at an auction.
Stephen began a tour of China in September 2010, starting with a project in Shanghai.
In 2011, Stephen created a panoramic memory drawing of New York City. This drawing is now displayed on a 250-foot-long giant billboard at John F. Kennedy International Airport. It is part of a global advertising campaign for a Swiss bank. That same year, he also appeared on the TV show Top Gear.
In July 2014, Stephen drew an aerial panorama of the Singapore skyline from memory. He completed the 1-meter by 4-meter artwork in five days after a short helicopter ride. This artwork was given to President Tony Tan as a gift for Singapore's 50th birthday in 2015. It is now displayed at the Singapore City Gallery.
Stephen's full-length documentary, titled Billions of Windows, was shown for the first time in London on 13 November 2019.
Awards and Recognition
Stephen Wiltshire's artwork has been featured in many TV documentaries. A famous neurologist, Oliver Sacks, wrote about Stephen in his book An Anthropologist on Mars.
In 1989, Stephen appeared on the cover of You magazine with actor Dustin Hoffman. Hoffman had played an autistic savant in the 1988 movie Rain Man, which Stephen says is one of his favorite films.
In 2006, Stephen was given the MBE award for his contributions to art. In September 2006, he opened his permanent art gallery in London.
On 15 February 2008, ABC News named him their Person of the Week.
In July 2009, he served as an ambassador for Children's Art Day in the United Kingdom.
In 2011, Stephen was made an honorary Fellow of the Society of Architectural Illustrators. In January 2015, he also became an honorary Fellow of The Scottish Society of Architect Artists.
See also
In Spanish: Stephen Wiltshire para niños
