| 1884 |
|
Born at Barton-on-Humber, 25 October; family
later moves to Barton-on-Trent where Walter eventually attends evening classes
in art; various family moves. |
| 1898 |
|
Walter sent to Bourne College, a boarding
school near Birmingham; attends art classes at the Municipal College of
Art in Birmingham, under R. Taylor (1899). |
| 1902-03 |
|
Goes to South Africa, works as an assistant
in country schools; then as a surveyor's assistant, a lawyer's clerk, and
as a reporter for the Diamond Fields Advisor. |
| 1907 |
|
Returns to England, works as a commercial
artist in Manchester; goes to London; meets Ernest S. Carlos with whom he
goes on sketching trips in the South of England. |
| 1908 |
|
Obtains a position of Art Master at Bishop's
School in Salisbury; marries Gladys Pitcher (1910) one of his students;
first one-man exhibition at the school in 1911. |
| 1912 |
|
Newlyn Seascape exhibited at Royal
Academy in London. |
| 1913 |
|
Exhibits for the last time in Salisbury; decides
to emigrate to Canada, selects Winnipeg; arrives in Winnipeg on June 8;
eventually secures teaching position at St. John's Technical School. |
| 1914 |
|
Meets another British artist, Cyril H. Barraud;
rents a cottage at Lake of the Woods for the first time. |
| 1915 |
|
Learns to etch from Barraud, buys press when
Barraud leaves for the War; executes first etchings. |
| 1916 |
|
National Gallery of Canada purchases two etchings. |
| 1917 |
|
Teaches at Madison, Wisconsin in the summer;
begins to experiment with colour woodcut technique; produces his first woodcut.
|
| 1919 |
|
Phillips' woodcuts discussed and reproduced
in The International Studio; trip aboard the Wolverine on
Lake Winnipeg. |
| 1920 |
|
National Gallery of Canada purchases a series
of colour woodcuts by Phillips. |
| 1921 |
|
Becomes an Associate of the Royal Canadian
Academy. |
| 1924 |
|
Phillips decides to move back to England with
his family; three month stay at Muskoka on Big Island; sails for England
in September; meets William Giles. |
| 1925 |
|
Meets Yoshijiro Urushibara who teaches him
how to size paper; returns to Canada; another stay at Muskoka, before returning
to Winnipeg; teaches at St. John's Tech for another year; also teaches at
the Phillips-Musgrove School of Art (which lasts a year). |
| 1926 |
|
Writes The Technique of the Colour Woodcut
which is published; begins a regular column called "Art and Artists"
in The Winnipeg Tribune; first trip to Rocky
Mountains with Tom MacLean and Eric Bergman. |
| 1927 |
|
First trip to the
West Coast; visits Alert Bay and other Siwash and Kwakiutl villages;
first portfolio appears, Ten Canadian Color Prints, in an edition
of 250. |
| 1928 |
|
Second portfolio published, The Canadian
Scene; concentrates on the Manitoba prairie as his subject matter. |
| 1929 |
|
Sketching trip through Manitoba with Alex
Musgrove; last summer stay with the family at Lake of the Woods. |
| 1930 |
|
Produces first portfolio of wood engravings,
An Essay in Woodcuts; York Boat on Lake
Winnipeg woodcut. |
| 1931 |
|
Fourth portfolio appears, Ten Woodcuts;
illustrates Dreams of Fort Garry. |
| 1932 |
|
Spends one month sketching on the West Coast. |
| 1933 |
|
Full member of Royal Canadian Academy. |
| 1936 |
|
Fifth portfolio appears, Winter Woodcuts. |
| 1940 |
|
Asked to be an instructor at the Banff Summer
School, the first of 20 summers. |
| 1941 |
|
Moves to Calgary in the fall. Also teaches
at Coste House. |
| 1942 |
|
Paints Dawn, Edmonton Airport (EAG
Collection). |
| 1946 |
|
Phillips decides to build a home in Banff
which will only be ready in the fall of 1948, when he moves to Banff. |
| 1947 |
|
A monograph on Phillips by Duncan Campbell
Scott is published. |
| 1953 |
|
Trouble with eyesight begins. |
| 1954 |
|
Commissioned to paint murals in CPR Strathcona
Park car. |
| 1959 |
|
First eye operation in Winnipeg. |
| 1960 |
|
Honorary Doctorate from the University of
Alberta; moves to Victoria in December. |
| 1961 |
|
Phillips is totally blind. |
| 1963 |
|
Dies in Victoria, after a lengthy illness;
ashes spread in the Rocky Mountains. |
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