Nicola Moir Art

2011-05-04T08:45:00.007+10:00

This blog has moved to www.nicolamoirart.com

One Way in Beach Street

2011-04-22T05:41:00.000+10:00

One Way in Beach Street

Watercolour on Arches

76cm x 56cm

Sydney Rain and Road

2011-04-21T15:16:00.002+10:00

Sydney Rain and Road

Watercolour on Arches

76cm x 57cm

Sydney has a distinctive torrential rain where the road becomes flooded within moments. The road that dominates this urban landscapes becomes an abstract mirror reflecting the cars image.

Nicola Moir at Gallery East, Clovelly

2011-04-18T13:57:00.001+10:00

Hanging the Show

2011-04-18T13:10:00.001+10:00

'Returning to Sydney' is on 7th - 17th April at Gallery East

2011-02-28T15:15:00.007+11:00

‘Returning to Sydney’

“A city is the pulsating product of the human hand and mind, reflecting man’s history, his struggle for freedom, creativity, genius and his selfishness and errors” Charles Abrams

This exhibition ‘Returning to Sydney’ is an artistic voyage through a city. The emphasis is not on the iconic imagery but rather those familiar ‘in-between’ spaces, capturing the everyday detail of how we know, move through, and imprint our values on the city. The spaces we inhabit between work, home and leisure are often the forgotten spaces but they are intrinsic to our experience and understanding of the city. The focus is on the public spaces which we share. This exploration is grounded in an enjoyment and appreciation of the texture of Sydney from the roads that connect us, to the low-lying red roofs and telegraph poles, to the unquestionably beautiful coast line. The approach draws on Chinese freehand brush painting where the purpose is not to simply reproduce the appearance of the subject but to capture its soul.

Nicola Moir (b.1979) is an artist raised in both Hong Kong and Scotland. She now resides in Sydney with her Australian partner and children. Nicola has exhibited widely in Scotland including the Royal Scottish Academy. This is her first Australian solo show.

Exhibition Invite

2011-02-25T09:19:00.000+11:00

Coast in Progress

2010-12-07T14:26:00.003+11:00

Coast in Progress

Watercolour on Arches

57cm x 38cm

This painting needs more work but I enjoy the energy that comes with under-painting a scene and the marks that result. I have used a lot of phthalo blue in this underworking, phthalo is the most over-powering watercolour colour I have come across. It can dominant the work and is hard to control, but it is so beautiful and intense.

Returning to Simeon Street

2010-11-30T18:30:00.000+11:00

Simeon Street Roofs

Mixed Media on Arches Paper

46cm x 38cm

From Simeon Street

2010-11-25T16:55:00.000+11:00

From Simeon Street

Watercolour, Ink, Chinese Paint on Bockingford

33cm x 26cm

From Simeon Street Ink

Ink on Watercolour Paper

24cm x 24cm

I recently discovered a new view of Clovelly from a high point near Simeon Street. It gives a wonderful outlook onto the landscapes and the graveyard and ocean in the distance. These are quick sketches from that point.

Blank Spaces

2010-11-19T15:02:00.004+11:00

Fern Street Road

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Rice Paper
58cm x 42cm

It is often hard to know when a painting is finished. In watercolour it is really important to be aware of over-working as this can dull a piece irretrievably. Oil and acyclic perhaps more forgiving as paint can be scraped back or painted on fresh. In watercolour I enjoy that each brush stroke is intrinsic to the final painting. Obviously, as a result I am attempting to make each stroke deliberate and beautiful, and also diverse. In these recent pieces I am deliberately exaggerating the under-working to leave some of the rice paper or watercolour paper completely exposed.

Fern Street

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Rice Paper
50cm x 42cm

Bronte Fence

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Arches
33cm x 27cm

Marine life in Gordons Bay

2010-11-08T20:15:00.001+11:00

Swimming in Gordons Bay

Watercolour, Chinese Paint, Craft Glue, Sand and Barnacles

76cm x 57cm

In this piece I want to capture the landscape with different elements on the same page. The painting is a landscape layered with features that define it. This is partially influenced by an Australian artist called John Wolseley. I visited his exhibition recently in the Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery in Sydney. Wolseley is inspired by the natural world and immerses himself in it to create wonderful layered beautiful documentations. I was inspired to approach Gordons Bay like this as this area is synonymous with its marine life. In painting this landscape I felt that the diving trail and marine life is intrinsic to the perception of the place. I wanted this to be central to the piece so i painted fish found in the bay along with the map lines of the scuba diving trail. The painting also has sand and barnacles collected from the beach.

The Heads

2010-11-06T14:56:00.000+11:00

The Heads

Watercolour and Chinese Paint on Arches

28cm x 40cm

The Harbour from Watsons Bay

Watercolour on Arches Paper

28cm x 40cm

The Silicon Artists

2010-11-04T07:28:00.003+11:00

The Silicon Artists, Tangerine’s Dream, 2010, oil, silicone and polyurethane on board, 120 x 180cm

My recent article for New Linear Perspectives quizzes the successful Australian artist duo The Silicon Artists represented by Rex Livingston Gallery, Sydney. Their work is shown above. The duo comprises of wife and husband, Catherine Conceicao and Josh Bullen. http://newlinearperspectives.wordpress.com/art/silicon-artists/

October Coogee

2010-10-23T13:37:00.003+11:00

October Coogee

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Arches Paper
57cm x 34cm

Today I visit Gallery East in Clovelly where my solo show will be in April 2011. The exhibition was another local artist called Nick Hollo. Like my recent work, he is also inspired by the Sydney landscape as his subject-matter. He uses oil pastels on board to create wonderful bold interpretations of the landscape.

Clovelly rock walk sketches

2010-10-18T11:05:00.000+11:00

Clovelly Sand

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Arches

20cm x 19cm

Clovelly rocks

Watercolour and Chinese Ink on Arches

26cm x 20cm

The distinct linear clouds combined with the pattern of rock or sand offers an inspiring reference point. In these small pieces I am using this real-life reference to abstract and suggest. Increasingly, my desire is to abstractly conceive reality in a way that does not purely abstract but rather captures the monumentality of the landscape. I want every brushstroke to express and to have purpose.

Coogee Distilled

2010-10-12T13:22:00.000+11:00

Coogee Distilled

Watercolour on Arches Paper

47cm x 33cm

Coogee is a suburb with a distinct visual language. The low-lying red roofs, the use of red brick, the exposed electricity wires, the mature foliage between the buildings. I want to reduce the representation to give a sense of this rhythm so that the painting could be representative of anywhere in the area rather than just a particular view.

South Coogee Horizon

2010-10-04T14:21:00.000+11:00

South Coogee Horizon

Watercolour on Arches

58cm x 39cm

The in-between spaces

2010-09-24T12:40:00.001+10:00

The in-between space

Watercolour on Arches Paper

57cm x 37cm

This is a painting from a space in-between I found when I was walking from A to B. I love walking. I often walk rather than take the car or bus. It takes me longer but I enjoy it. I enjoy feeling how spaces connect. So often we rely on transport to take us from A to B without enjoying those spaces in-between. I am a fan of the author Will Self who has written a book called Psychogeography. Basically, he argues that transport, particularly the car, has removed us from understand our landscape. He proposes that people understand the world as a series of disconnected microcosms without any understand how they relate. To better understand the landscape people should walk more.

Eastgardens Watercolour

2010-09-19T08:01:00.001+10:00

Eastgardens Watercolour

Watercolour on Arches Paper

57cm x 38cm

This is the view looking south from the Westfield Eastgardens carpark. The view looks down Denison Street and eventually to Port Botany on the horizon. The distinctive red roofs illustrate the residential area of this landscape.

Auctioning the Landscape

2010-09-18T20:47:00.002+10:00

Auctioning the Landscape

Acyric, Ink, Collage, Chinese Paints on Card
64cm x 51cm

This piece is an experiment using collage and even looser treatment of the landscape. The collage comes from the Southern Courier a local paper that has a large section with local real estate advertisments. The idea was to reference the fundamental aspect of economic value in the construction of the landscape. I really enjoy the work of Mark Bradford who uses collage in a unique way to create abstract map-like, layered pieces. Bradford finds all the materials used from the street in the form of posters or flyers then reappropriates them as an artwork.

Abstracting rock patterns

2010-09-09T18:47:00.001+10:00

Clovelly and the Vans

Chinese Paint and Ink on Rice Paper

42cm x 40cm

Clovelly Monochrome Ink Sketch

Chinese Ink on Rice Paper

58cm x 42cm

In these ink sketches I am reducing the landscape to pattern from the water and rock. The sandstone rock provides endless reference for abstraction.

La Perouse Ink Path

2010-09-04T13:45:00.002+10:00

La Perouse Ink Path

Chinese Ink and Paint on Rice Paper

42cm x 65cm

This pathway runs parallel to the coast of Botany Bay and is set within the urban suburb of La Perouse. Yet , at times the density of the forest removes all of these geographical associations for a moment so that the pathway could be anywhere in the bush. I enjoy these spaces in the city where I can feel emersed in 'nature'.

This piece on rice paper, a wonderful translucent surface, and as I am learning a less robust one. In the centre of the painting you may notice a hole where you can see my ink covered drawing board.

Claudia Massie - Geo Prints

2010-09-03T22:51:00.002+10:00

In any landscape painting the artist selects what to put in the frame and what to represent. The artist is attempting to depict an interpretation of the landscape to give a sense of its character. Claudia Massie is a Scottish artist who focuses on distilling the character of the Scottish landscape. I have exhibited with her in several exhibitions in Scotland in the past. Claudia has had great success for her strong, bold and dark rural landscapes taken from eye-level view. However, in her most recent show she has drawn on geological maps to depict a fascinating and novel view of the landscape. She uses fossils found in the areas to give further depth to her investigation. The results are beautiful and fascinating pieces that invite the viewer to consider the earth beyond the noise of human existence. Her work can be viewed on her blog here.

Claudia Massie (2010), Untitled, monotype/screenprint

Paths to Abstraction

2010-09-02T20:56:00.000+10:00

I have reviewed the present Paths to Abstraction exhibition on at the Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney. The exhibition brings together over 150 pieces from Impressionism, Nabis, Fauvism, Cubism and Dada, to name a few. The basic premise of the exhibition challenges the idea of a hegemonic narrative and suggests is that there was no single movement to abstraction in European art but rather the paths to abstraction in were varied and unpredictable. The article can be read here in the New Linear Perspectives the literary arts and culture journal.

Watson Bay Boat Sketch

2010-09-01T13:59:00.001+10:00

Watson Bay Boat Sketch

Watercolour, Ink and Chinese Paint on Arches 300gsm

33cm x 24cm

Watsons Bay Californian Bugalow

2010-08-29T20:18:00.002+10:00

Watson Bay Californian Bungalow

Watercolour on Arches Paper

75cm x 56cm

Suburbia

2010-08-22T15:39:00.001+10:00

Today I had time to get to the Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney city. As I neither work or live in the city I do not go there often, so when I do visit I become acutely aware of how different the urban environment is there to the more expansive suburban Sydney. The density is significantly higher with more people, taller buildings and subsequently less sunlight. Perhaps due to its unfamiliarity I felt no desire to connect with this landscape and try to paint it. However my suburban ease was appeased in the Gallery of NSW in a large painting by Howard Arkley entitled 'Superb + solid' (1998) painted in synthetic polymenr on canvas . This is unusual as it engages with the suburbian landscape which is often disregarded in Australian landscape painting for the city or the bush. The house seems to be a more modernised take on a federation home perhaps built in the 1950s. The artist has distilled the image so that the suburban home almost takes on an iconic feel of a glossy real-estate photo. The idea of Suburbia has many connotations between a positive and comforting place to an isolating and unprogressive environment. It seems for an urban environment that is so significant and dominant in Australia there should be more artists examining the subject-matter.


Howard Arkley, 'Superb + solid' (1998)

Bronte, Clovelly and Coogee Architectural Details

2010-08-21T21:18:00.002+10:00

The Eastern Suburbs have a great variety of architecture that characterise the landscape. The physicality of the buildings gives an indication of the values and aesthetics of the time that they were built. Though ideas and trends move on these buildings stay static as a stationary reminder of what was. As an artist inspired by the built environment of Sydney I find it interesting to consider these various influences that shaped the landscape we see today. I am drawn to the wide diversity of architecture in the Eastern Suburbs and its ability to seem somewhat cohesive, such that the many influences come together in a way that has a distinct character.

For this blog entry I have taken a series of photographs of architectural details of buildings in Bronte, Clovelly and Coogee. These photos are by no means conclusive but provide a small taster of the finer texture to the landscape. Much of the development of architecture in Sydney was moulded by imported European or American styles which were modfied by the climate and the materials available to build. Some of these styles are shown below.

From a Coogee Roundabout

2010-08-19T14:30:00.000+10:00

From a Coogee Roundabout

Watercolour, Ink, Chinese Ink and Paint on Arches Paper

75cm x 56cm

Coogee Rooftops

2010-08-10T15:38:00.000+10:00

Coogee Rooftops

Watercolour, Chinese Ink and Paint on Bockingford Paper

75cm x 55cm

I do not know if this piece is finished, it might need something to pull it all together. It is larger than I have been working on on previous pieces. I want to find the right balance between abstraction and representation to give a greater sense of the place.

Randwick Inkscape

2010-08-06T15:38:00.000+10:00

Randwick Inkscape

Chinese Ink and Paint on Paper

50cm x 28cm

Sculptures of Urbanity

2010-08-05T20:33:00.001+10:00

Malabar Road Sketch

Chinese Ink and Paints on Rice Paper

52cm x 42cm

I had lots of interruptions today doing this painting so the finished piece is not what I set out to do. The scene depicted is a junction on a main road in Maroubra with traffic lights, road signs and electricity wires. It is these functional sculptures of urbanity that I want to capture.

Made in China

2010-08-04T19:47:00.000+10:00

California Bungalows on Rice Paper

Chinese Ink and Paint on Rice Paper

42cm x 34cm

Coogee California Bungalows

Chinese Ink and Paint on Paper
40cm x 29cm

Continuing with the Shui-mo-hau influence, I want to juxapose these Chinese art materials with a distinctly Sydney built environment.

Clovelly Cliff

2010-08-03T13:45:00.000+10:00

Clovelly Cliff

Chinese Ink and Paint on Paper

29cm x 40cm

Shui-mo-hua

2010-08-02T13:39:00.001+10:00

Clovelly Rock

Chinese Ink and Paints on Rice Paper Scroll

42cm x 59cm

Clovelly Swell Sketch

Chinese Ink and Paint on Paper

40cm x 29cm

Inspired by a recent trip to Hong Kong, a place I grew up I have decided to draw on some Chinese painting influence for these pieces. With my recent use of ink and watercolour it feels like a natural progression to look at Chinese landscape painting. This genre of painting has a deep history in using ink and washes which is more specifically known as Shui-mo-hua. The idea of this form of painting is not to reproduce the subject but to capture its essence. So to paint waves, rather than portraying a static image, the goal is to express its power or movement and to reduce the useless detail.

Hong Kong Contemporary Art Biennial Awards

2010-07-29T08:47:00.002+10:00

I am visiting Hong Kong and have written an article on the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Biennial Awards 2009 for the online magazine New Linear Perspectives. The Biennial is exhibited between May and August 2010 in the Hong Kong Museum of Art. Read the article here.

Brook Street Bungalows

2010-07-14T21:28:00.000+10:00

Brook Street Houses

Acrylic, Ink, Graphite and Oil Pastel on Paper

64cm x 54cm

Any painting lies somewhere between complete abstraction and complete representation. This painting is another attempt at abstracting the landscape more so that it is clear what is represented but that the painting takes on a character of its own. Like any landscape Brook Street is layer upon layer of pattern that comes together in a way that is distinctive for the area. The low lying red california bungalow roofs, the electricity wires and the foliage are features that are intrinsic to the character of Coogee.

Clovelly Road Dribbles

2010-07-13T16:17:00.000+10:00

Clovelly Road Dribbles

Watercolour, Ink, Acrylic and Oil Pastel

64cm x 51cm

I do not know what I think of this painting yet. I completely lost control of it then it came together again... I think.

Tamarama Beach Playing

2010-07-12T13:43:00.001+10:00

Tamarama Beach Playing

Watercolour, Ink and Acrylic

64cm x 51cm

This is a playful painting of Tamarama Beach viewed from the coastal walk. The painting was produced with quick movements which caused some of the paint to splatter on the paper. Tamarama is a narrow beach between two protruding sandstone headlands. Swimming here is extremely hazardous due to the fast flowing rips.

Bronte Beach in Graphite

2010-07-11T13:40:00.002+10:00

Bronte Beach in Graphite

Graphite and Eraser on Paper

61cm x 54cm

This drawing captures Bronte beach from the north on the coastal walk. It is winter so the beach is sparse of people. In the foreground you can see the edge of the sandstone cliff I am viewing from. Whilst drawing this piece I decided to use lines to build up the tone both with graphite and rubbing away with the eraser. The linear process reminded me of Alberto Giacometti's work. I am a big fan of this artist who lived from 1906 to 1966. He was famous for his emaciated figure sculptures, however, I have always been more drawn to his lesser know drawings and paintings. He uses a technique of layering lines to build up the image. The lines feel like there is urgency to them which combine in a vibrant chaos. Much of the intensity of his compositions comes from the staring gaze of the person captured.

Alberto Giacometti (1906-1966)

Oil on Canvas

Coastal Walk near Waverley Cemetery

2010-07-09T17:35:00.003+10:00

Coastal Walk near Waverley Cemetery

Ink and Watercolour on Card

51cm x 64cm

Bay Street, Botany

2010-07-09T16:58:00.002+10:00

Bay Street

Acrylic, Watercolour, Ink and Oil Pastel on Card

51cm x 64cm

Bay Street in Botany is a long street that stretches over two suburbs in Sydney. The street gains its name from its original contruction where it lead to Botany Bay. This access is now blocked by a large storm water pipe. Botany was once a working class suburb which has now been engulfed by the expanding wealth of home buyers. Like most Sydney streets there is a large variety of architecture using brick and weatherboard. The streets are lined by electricity poles and developed foliage.

Clovelly Surf Lifesaving Club in July

2010-07-08T19:20:00.000+10:00

Clovelly Surf Lifesaving Club in July

Acrylic, Watercolour, Ink and Oil Pastel on Card

64cm x 51cm

Abstracting Maroubra Beach

2010-07-02T15:08:00.004+10:00

Maroubra Beach

Watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm
56cm x 26cm

I find it easier to abstract the image and suggest more with ink and some watercolour however there is such potential with watercolour alone when it applied loose and freely. This painting is a larger watercolour than I normally paint and in it I have attempted to achieve the free mark-making of ink using only watercolour. I am relatively happy with it but there is a long way to go!

Maroubra Beach in July

2010-07-01T14:13:00.000+10:00

Maroubra Beach in July

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm

27cm x 21cm

Broad-leafed Paperbark Trees

2010-06-30T14:21:00.001+10:00

Broad-leafed Paperbark Trees

Watercolour on Bockingford 300gsm Paper

24cm x 22cm

These Broad-leafed Paperbark Trees stand between Busbys Pond and the Mission fields in Centennial Park. They were planted in 1902 as a wind break.

Parsley Bay Foliage

2010-06-29T07:55:00.000+10:00

Parsley Bay Foliage

Ink and Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper

27cm x 35cm

North Coogee Beach in Winter

2010-06-27T15:20:00.002+10:00

North Coogee in June

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper

56cm x 21cm

Tower Block in Coogee

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper

27cm x 21cm

Burnie Street, Clovelly

2010-06-25T17:08:00.004+10:00

Burnie Street

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper

36cm x 28cm

This painting was an exploration into a composition with a strong vanishing point. I wanted to capture the shadow pattern on the ground particularly from the fence to emphasis the converging perspective. As someone who has spent a lot of time in a cold and wet temperate climate I am really enjoying the strong light of Australia and the interesting effect it has on the landscape.

Bare Island in Botany Bay

2010-06-24T19:59:00.004+10:00

Bare Island in Botany Bay

33cm x 30cm

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper

These watercolours are from a recent walk around Congwong Bay near the New South Wales Golf course. It is interesting to view the traffic from the cargo ships sailing in and out of Botany Bay. From this vista there is also a clear view of the historic military fort island Bare Island which is connected to the mainland with a board walk. In the painting above I was almost looking into the sun and the sea reflected the sunlight. I have left the paper with a very thin wash to try and depict this reflection. In my work at the moment I trying to be minimalistic in my use of brushstrokes to suggest the scene. Watercolours are a medium where the phrase 'less is more' reigns supreme. They can be very unforgiving with heavy-handedness. I feel the painting below is overworked and does not flow as well as the painting above.

Botany Bay from near New South Wales Golf Course

27cm x 22cm
Watercolour on Arches 300 gsm Paper

Parsley Bay, Vaucluse

2010-06-23T17:40:00.008+10:00

Parsley Bay Bridge

Watercolour on Arches 300gsm Paper
23cm x 30cm

A friend recommended I visit Parsley Bay and I am so glad she did. It is a wonderful picturesque oasis off Sydney harbour. The bay is a narrow inlet from the harbour with a large lawn behind the beach and dense vegetation to the sides of the inlet. Parsley Bay is most distinguished by its footpath cable suspension bridge which spans over the water. Sydney is full of these wonderful harbour bays that provide a lovely calm to the city. These watercolours were painted in the winter so feature no people. I can image in the summer I would have to capture the many swimmers as this is an idyllic swimming beach. I intend to come back and capture that.

View from the Bridge, Parsley Bay Boats

Watercolour on Arches 180gsm Paper
25cm x 17cm

Parsley Bay Rocks

Watercolour and Ink on Bockingford 300gsm Paper
21cm x 30cm

The top two paintings today were pure watercolours. The third painting is ink and watercolour. In this 'Parsley Bay Rocks' I wanted to abstract the rocks and vegetation to give a sense of the many patterns that emerge in a space like this.

Coogee Bungalow

2010-06-21T22:08:00.000+10:00

Coogee Bungalow

Brown and Black Ink, and Watercolour on Watercolour Paper

42cm x 29cm

Sydney Biennale of Art

2010-06-20T07:38:00.000+10:00

I have written a review of the Sydney Biennale of Art in the online magazine New Linear Perspectives. I highly recommend a perusal of this magazine which offers varied and interesting articles on art, literature, music, nature and more.

Brook Street

2010-06-18T14:23:00.005+10:00

Brook Street viewing South

Watercolour on Arches 180 gsm

27cm x 20cm

Carrington Road

2010-06-17T14:55:00.001+10:00

Carrington Road Viewing South

Watercolour on Arches 180gsm Paper
33cm x 31cm

Gordons Bay Rocks

2010-06-15T18:37:00.001+10:00

Gordons Bay Rocks