Wilhelm Raade
The Wandering Artist
Early Life
Wilhelm was born in Norway, and at the age of 22 he went to sea. One of the boats he served on early in his career was called the Manicia, a three masted full rig tall ship. He described many trips off South America and into the Pacific collecting guano from various locations.
He also sailed with cargoes of saltpeter used in the manafacture of gunpowder and fertilizer. Some of these trips took about a year sailing south around Cape Horn and up to Chili.
Other trips took him to Portugal and to Africa.
He started his painting as a young boy at age 15.
The Manicia, three masted full rig tall ship
Between his sailing trips, he began to develop an appreciation for the outdoors and wildlife. He began to incorporate this interest into his paintings, and in 1941 he quit the life on the rolling waves and began living off the sale of his artwork in Norway.
The Move to Canada.
In 1957 Wilhelm moved with his wife and family to Canada.They settled in Port Arthur, Ontario. He exhibited his work at the Lakehead Exhibition in 1957.
By this time, he had established himself as a fine artist. In one of his earliest newspaper interviews, he was referred to as an immigrant who reproduces Rembrandts!
Sadly, Wilhelm's wife passed away in 1970.
He then spent several years prospecting and trapping in Northern British Columbia. With the help of a trapper friend, Wilhelm built a 16' x 13' log cabin. The two worked a 30 mile trapline near Watson Lake far from civilization.
Despite panning for gold in the summer months while in BC, he only netted a few ounces of gold for his efforts
Since that time, he spent a lot of time in his unique, green 1966 International pickup truck. The small home-made camper he built for the back of the truck was unique. On the sides were hand painted nature scenes, a lake and a small cabin in the wilderness. On the rear of the unit, it was painted to look like the wall and door of a log cabin with a young woman standing outside the door. The face of the woman portrayed that of his oldest daughter.
The vehicle was used by Wilhelm until he stopped driving out to the mountains in the 1980's
The Mountains
Wilhelm (Willy) eventually lost interest in trapping and started doing all his shooting with a 16mm camera.
After selling his cabin to his trapper friend, he moved into a $50 a month small shack in Calgary and again started to earn a living of selling his art work. Not sure when this happened
In Calgary, he was criticized by his sister for selling his artwork too cheaply, but he reminded her money was not one of his priorities. He liked to sell to people who could afford his work, most of whom could not afford a high price tag!
Wilhelm liked to live a simple lifestyle. He was content to paint, ice fish and cross country ski. He also used to eat well, but had a narrow variety of food he liked. Rye bread, goat cheese, raw honey, ox-tail soup with lots of vegetables, Alaskan Black cod fish, and home made donuts. He always had a pot of coffee ready to share with a visitor who showed interest in his paintings.
He would drive out to Kananaskis Country and camp close to the Kananaskis Lakes for a month at a time, living in his small camper and doing the things he loved including his painting. At night, he would always take tea with some of his honey and a shot of cognac, making it quite clear a bottle would last about two months!
He spent a lot of time in Kananaskis, camping at Interlakes between the Upper and Lower Kananaskis Lakes, and in his all time favorite spot where the Smith Dorrien Creek flowed in to the Lower Kananaskis Lake.
With the creation of Kananaskis Country in 1978, it meant Wilhelm had to consider camping in the newly created campgrounds, however he endeared himself to some of the Park Rangers, and they turned a bit of a blind eye and let him stay in places he had been going to for years, opening a locked gate and letting him get to his favorite spot, even though there was no longer any vehicle access or camping there - as long as they got to have some of his coffee and donuts! Rangers wanted to help an old man enjoy the remaining years of his life enjoying the locations he had been coming to for decades.
He enjoyed his long trips to the mountains at all times of the year, and in winter, he had a European sleeping bag that he said was warmer than the ones here, and a grizzly bear skin comforter.
Willy passed away in 1986 at 89 years of age.
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His last truck and camper parked at Smith Dorien Creek
Inside his small camper, doughnut tin on the table to the right 1983
Me sitting in the chair enjoying coffee and a donut! 1983
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