Born in Sandridge, Manitoba, Clarence Tillenius (1913 – 2012) grew up exploring the wilderness of the Interlake region. His keen study of nature as a young boy instilled a deep reverence for nature, sparking a life-long commitment to wildlife preservation.

 

With a career spanning six decades, Tillenius became one of Canada’s foremost nature artists, known for his dedication to the study of wildlife and his extensive travels to observe animals in their natural habitats.

 

In 1936 while operating a steam shovel during a railway line reconstruction, a rock car fell on Tillenius, nearly killing him. Despite the loss of his painting arm in this accident, he was determined to continue painting. He taught himself to paint again with his left hand, resolute in his mission to capture North America’s vanishing wildlife on canvas.

 

His tenacity paid off. In 1954, at the request of Monarch Life Assurance Company, Tillenius travelled across Canada to paint a series of 200 paintings depicting the nation’s wildlife and landscapes. This impressive collection is now held at the Pavillion Gallery at Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg.

 

Among his other significant accomplishments are the dioramas created for museums across Canada. In 2007, the Canadian Museum of Nature dedicated Tillenius's dioramas "national treasures" a rare distinction shared by only a few Canadian artists.

 

Tillenius was a founding member of the Society of Animal Artists in New York and the Society of Wildlife Art of the Nations in England. He was also a fellow of the Explorers Club in New York and the Royal Geographical Society of London. In 1970, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws by the University of Winnipeg. Later he was honoured with appointments to the Order of Manitoba in 2003, and the Order of Canada in 2005.