Robert Timothy Bruce
BRUCE KING - Robert Timothy Bruce, 53, after an extended illness, went to be with his Lord, Wednesday, March 11, 2009. He was born September 18, 1955 in Kingsport, Tennessee the son of Gerald Randolph and Margaret Joan Easterly Bruce. Southeastern artist, Tim Bruce, was a modest man of few words but many works. So, what may be learned of his life and the workings of his mind must be discovered within his work. Tim Bruce might be described as a pictorial poet or storyteller, even though he would have likely railed at such lofty language. Self-deprecating and possessing a wry humor and insight regarding life, his work is imbued with an atmosphere of days gone by and irretrievably lost, which we all at times find ourselves yearning to recapture. There are brilliant painters and there are brilliant sculptors. Rarely does an artist come along who is brilliant in both mediums. Tim Bruce was that rarity. Tim Bruce was a native North Carolinian whose artwork is well known to discerning collectors, both private and corporate, across the United States and beyond. Tim was a 1977 graduate of the Ringling School of Arts in Sarasota, Florida. He had a highly successful career as a freelance illustrator and was the recipient of numerous national illustration awards including the prestigious Society of Illustrators, the New York Art Directors Club, the Graphic Design USA, and the International Graphics Awards. Many of his limited edition prints are now sold out and command a great deal of interest in the secondary market. One of his most recent honors was to have an illustration presented to former President Bush at the centennial of the Wright Brothers 1st. Flight. Tim resided, painted and sculpted in King, North Carolina. He is survived by a daughter, Jamie Bruce; a son, Chad Lawson; three grandchildren; his mother, Joan Easterly Bruce; biological father, Robert W. Houser; and two sisters, Teresa Weavil, and Lisa Wilson. A Memorial Service will be held 7 p.m., Friday, March 13, at Slate Funeral Home in King with Timothy Porter, Minister officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Forsyth County Humane Society, 61 Miller Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27104.