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               I'm inspired by the way it feels to be an observer, more than by any vision behind why I paint. All I know is that I can’t paint unless I feel moved to make a deep connection to the subject. I often use photographs as a source, but not with the intent of doing photographic likeness, or realism, or for the ease of reducing objects into two-dimensional form. It's the way the camera captures movement and light, and preserves the spirit of an instant. When I paint, I establish a bond - “become” my subject, like an actor approaches character. What I internalize gets moved back out of myself, onto the page. The sensual grace of a brush on canvas is a form of affection, a caress of another unique identity. Painting also feels deeply tied to nature - playing with tools and elements that stem from the earth. I can't think of any other reason for painting than to seek all these subtle connections.

            - Robin Moore

 

                Born in New York City to parents that were both accomplished classical musicians, Robin was initially grounded in the arts. She thought that creative expression was as vital as food. Her family soon moved upstate, to an idilic, New England-esque community where she took to wandering the streams and forests in her immediate neighborhood. The few years of living in the country had lasting impact. Before her early teens, the family moved to the country’s polar opposite - downtown Los Angeles. This change would instill in Robin a lasting desire to return to rural life, and an admiration for people who lived in connection to the natural world.

In high school, she began to develop her artistic interests. While primarily pursuing music, she experimented in several different forms of expression -- drawing, painting, photography, film studies, and creative writing. She had difficulty deciding which media was most satisfying and struggled, after high school, with what to actively pursue. In time, she learned that any form can be influenced by all the others, to degrees. When painting, she takes inspiration from photographs, music, the lyrics of songs, stories from books, and the content of film. She settled on two dimensional media, graduating from the California College of the Arts in 1980, with majors in painting and drawing.

During college, Robin spent summers working in Yellowstone National Park, housekeeping vacation cabins and apprenticing with the guided trail rides to become a horse wrangler. She loved the beauty of Wyoming, has been fascinated by the state’s history, and continues to admire the people who work with horses in that rugged land.

While at home in the San Francisco Bay Area, Robin often painted Point Reyes National Seashore. She researched Inverness’ beloved stranded boat The Point Reyes, doing several paintings of the derelict boat. These Point Reyes related series have been carried by Holton Studio Frame-makers of Berkeley.

Robin currently lives in Abiquiu, New Mexico, made famous as the home of Georgia O’Keefe. In the high desert, she is constantly awed by formations of land and sky, the power and vastness of the elements, and how quickly and effortlessly change occurs on at magnificent scale. She hopes to produce a series of oil paintings of this region.

 

 

 

Shows

  • 2009 - Berkeley Hillside Club - Annual Invitational Exhibit - Northern California Landscapes
  • 2009 - West Marin Wild - Bi-annual Invitational Fundraiser for the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin, California
  • 2008 - Watercolors of Tomales Bay - Holton Studio Frame-Makers, Emeryville, California
  • 2007 - West Marin Wild - Bi-annual Invitational Fundraiser for the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin, California
  • 2003 - Independent Show - Contra Costa County Public Law Library, Martinez, California
  • 1993 - Independent Show - Viewpoints Gallery, Point Reyes Station, California
  • 1992 - Work included in the show of Top 100 - Arts for the Parks Exhibit, Jackson, Wyoming
  • 1985, '82, '79, '78 - California State Fair, - Fine Arts Exhibit, Sacramento, California
  • 1980 - Independent Show - Roy Jeans Gallery, Martinez, California

Awards

  • 2000 - six week Ucross Foundation Residency – Ucross, Wyoming
  • 1985 - Las Juntas Artists - First Place
  • 1982, ‘78 - California State Fair - First Place
  • 1976 - Agape Arts Contest - Second Place
  • 1977 - CCAC Student Show - Honorable Mention
  • 1975 - Student League of S.F. - First Place
  • 1974 - Senior Art Show - First Place

Published Works

  • 2000 – The Education of Mary, by Ann Rinaldi, Hyperion
  • 1999 – The Gate in the Wall, by Ellen Howard, Simon & Schuster
  • 1998 – Listening for Leroy, by Betsy Hearne, Simon & Schuster
  • 1997 – Real, by Felice Holman, Simon & Schuster
  • 1997 – Across the Lines, by Carolyn Reeder, Macmillan
  • 1996 – Rashee and the Seven Elephants, by Richard Vaughan, Harper Collins
  • 1994 – The Far Looker, by Mari Sandoz, Harper Collins
  • 1993 – Lift the Sky Up, by Richard Vaughan, Harper Collins
  • 1992 – Catalog of Top 100 Artists - Arts for the Parks
  • 1989 – Shades of Gray, by Carolyn Reeder, Macmillan

Education

  • 1980 – B.F.A. – California College of the Arts – Oakland, California

 

portrait photograph of the artist, Robin Moore.