Robert Moore


“I like to create work that’s a bit like a landscape and a bit like a map, but also has patterns and numbers, so it’s part memory, part place, part story.”

Robert Moore is an Australian artist known for his vibrant, pattern-driven paintings that blend the personal with the architectural and ecological. Based in the Clarence Valley in northern New South Wales, Moore maintains a rigorous daily studio practice that has sustained his career since the 1980s. He rose to prominence through his work with the iconic Australian lifestyle brand Mambo in the 1990s and 2000s, and continues to be a creative force today as a contributor to the global label Deus Ex Machina. His art appears on surfboards, garments, and installations around the world, while his studio work spans everything from small, intimate canvases to expansive multi-panel compositions. Moore’s paintings often incorporate typography, numbers, and repeated forms—visual rhythms that echo both human-made environments and the biodiversity of regional Australia.

While much of his work is rooted in the landscape, Moore filters his surroundings through memory, humour, and cultural reference. His flattened forms and stylised shapes speak to the visual language of signage, suburban iconography, and roadside architecture, often punctuated with images of cars that nod to childhood nostalgia. Equally comfortable in visual and musical languages, he has also played bass guitar with artists including Robert Forster (The Go-Betweens) and Neil and Tim Finn (Crowded House). Despite these varied creative outlets, painting remains central to Moore’s practice—an evolving reflection of life lived closely with place, colour, and tempo. His work is held in major collections including the National Gallery of Australia and numerous private holdings internationally.

 About the Artist

    • *1964, lives and works in Clarence Valley, NSW

    • Bachelor of Arts (Sculpture), Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education (now University of Southern Queensland)

  • Selected Solo Exhibitions

    • 2023
      Seaworthy — Linton & Kay Galleries, WA

    • 2017
      New England Regional Art Museum, NSW

    • 2016
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2014
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2012
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2010
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2008
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2006
      Heiser Gallery, QLD

    • 2005
      Lismore Regional Gallery, NSW

    • 1988
      Ray Hughes Gallery, Brisbane

    Selected Group Exhibitions

    • 2024
      Linton & Kay Galleries, WA

    • 2001
      Ipswich Art Gallery, QLD

    • 2000
      Heide Museum of Modern Art, VIC

    • 1999
      Ipswich Art Gallery

    • 1994
      Art Irritates Life (Mambo Touring Exhibition), various locations

    • 1990
      National Gallery of Victoria
      Twenty Australian Artists — Galleria San Vidal, Venice & Queensland Art Gallery

  • Awards

    • 2017
      Finalist — Sunshine Coast Art Prize

    • 2016
      Finalist — Wynne Prize, Art Gallery of New South Wales

    • 2001
      Anne Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship

    Collections

    National Gallery of Australia
    Queensland Art Gallery
    National Gallery of Victoria
    Museum of Brisbane
    Gold Coast City Art Gallery
    Ipswich Art Gallery
    Artspace Mackay
    Holmes à Court Collection, Perth

Works by the Artist

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Alan Muller