A study of John Wilesmith, Tasmanian Fish Taxidermist

by Carl Hyland on 22 Aug 2011 Some people are born to work in blue collar, some are destined for business, well it seems like one man was gifted to reproduce fish skin mounts and taxidermy which resulted in England’s loss, Tasmania’s gain.

English-born John Wilesmith has resided in Tasmania since 1993, bringing with him a background of many years' experience in the ceramics industry. John started his trade as a teenager at a reputable china factory in Herefordshire. He went on to take his skills to New Zealand and, on a return trip to the UK, worked for the famous Royal Worcester Porcelain. His work on fine china and engraving, stood him in good stead for what was to become a dramatic turn in his life.

Upon arriving in Tasmania, John, with the help of his partner, built up a business in ceramics, designing and making ceramics for the tourist market and specialising in detailed animal and bird studies, realistically finished with airbrush techniques. Business was going well when John was struck down with a brain aneurism in late 2001. Needless to say, this put a stop to business operations.

During a difficult period of convalescence, which involved re-learning the use of fine motor skills and talking, John took an interest in fish taxidermy, taking this up as a hobby. He now brings his skills to the art form of fish taxidermy. Indeed John incorporates some of his ceramic techniques into his fish taxidermy, such as mold making, modelling and airbrush decorating.

It has been a long, slow road to recovery. John no longer makes ceramics on a mass production basis and now works in a more limited capacity making one-off pieces and fishskin mounts.

John has recently progressed into fibreglass molding for fish replication, a new ‘ball game’ as John says and he trusts that this new venture will enable him to branch into saltwater species reproduction and more detailed additions to his fish skin mount studies.

I am fortunate in that I have had the privilege of meeting John or ‘Johnno' as he likes to be known and have spent a few wondrous hours in his fine workshop in the sleepy little village of Sheffield in Tasmania, more renowned for its mural displays.

I feel that this will change though, as more and more people learn about the wonderful craftsman John Wilesmith.
Information about John’s work can be obtained from his web site….. http://airbrushedtolife.com