Acclaimed Australian artist Shane Moad was born in Manly, New South Wales, in 1959. He came to live in Western Australia in 1979.
The Moad’s originate from the Shetland Islands; from there, they went to America and Australia.
The Australian landscape has always moved Shane. On his mother’s side (Blackman), his family is a pioneering family who owned cattle and sheep stations in New South Wales, arriving in Australia in 1801 as free settlers.
Shane’s early life was spent as a Stockman (cowboy) on stations in Western Australia. So his love for the Australian landscape is fundamental to who he is. On the Moad side, there is a strong connection to America, hence his interest in the American landscape and his Australian homeland.
His faith also drives his love for the landscape. He sees the Creator’s involvement amongst all that he paints.
In 1994, four years after a major motorcycle accident, he found he had a talent in painting that was unknown to him until that time. Shane has had no formal instruction and continues to grow as an artist through observation and practice.
His desire in his work is to strip it to its essence as he enjoys taking a bare-bones view of the landscape, leaving the viewer to interpret it as they will.
He has a strong color content in his paintings with a semi-abstract view of the landscape, which is his main subject matter. Shane Moad interprets the landscape giving them almost human form with a sensual feeling to them, always hoping to bring another way to experience the scene.
Shane Moad’s Artwork
Shane’s artwork is in private and corporate collections throughout Australia, America, England, and Asia. His style is recognized by leading authorities in the art world as very unique in its approach. He has also won the “Cossack Art Award”, the nation’s largest regional art award, twice in the landscape category. This award attracts artists with the caliber of Ken Done, Sally Morgan, Larry Mitchell, John Borak, and the late Elizabeth Durack, to name a few.
Shane Moad has been given awards by Alan R. Dodge, Past Director of the “Art Gallery of Western Australia”, Robert Juniper, esteemed Australian artist, David Walker, Adjunct Professor of Art, Curtin University, Robert Cook, Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Art Gallery of Western Australia and an art critic for The West Australian, plus many others.
Shane lives in the picturesque Avon Valley of Western Australia with his wife, Valerie.