Bill Wauchop held powerful roles as president of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts and board member of the National Art Gallery. He was also associated with establishing the Kelliher Art Award in the 1950s. While he collected drawings by Christopher Perkins, he publicly denounced Modernist developments as ‘crude and ugly’. Wauchop preferred traditional, ‘inspiring’ romantic imagery. The scenic landscape of the Taramakau Valley between Hokitika and Greymouth remained one of his favourite painting spots.