Tom Kreisler

Tom Kreisler (1938–2002) was an Argentinian-born New Zealand artist and poet. In New Zealand, he was taken care of by his aunt and uncle. He attended Ilam School of Fine Arts at the University of Canterbury alongside Dick Frizzell and John Coley. In the 1960s and 1970s, Kreisler exhibited at the Barry Lett Gallery in Auckland but his work gained limited recognition.

In 1977, Kreisler first travelled back to Latin America to visit his ill mother in Mexico although she died before he arrived. The death affected Kreisler greatly and he subsequently moved his entire family to the country. Kreisler associated with artists such as Darcy Lange, Warren Viscoe, Dick Frizzell and Toss Woollaston and was influential in the establishment and ongoing support of the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery,

In 2015, Shirley Horrocks directed the documentary Tom Who? The Enigma of Tom Kreisler about Kreisler's life.

Art Kreisler's early work was influenced by Pop Art, a style which carried through to his later works. He predominantly painted in broad and scumbled strokes on canvas.