Jim Moir is known for his characterful paintings of British birds, around 45 of which will feature in this new exhibition, including some that have been created exclusively for display at the Lady Lever Art Gallery.
Many visitors will be familiar with Moir’s work following the successful Sky Arts series, Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir. This will be the first time that the artist’s paintings have been displayed in a national gallery, with most works available for purchase.
Although he is known to many for his earlier comedic work under the stage name of Vic Reeves, art came first for Moir. “All I ever did as a child was paint”, he has claimed, having produced art throughout his life.
Born in Leeds in 1959, Moir grew up in Darlington. The natural world was his playground as a child. He and his friends would search for birds and their nests in hedgerows. After his father gifted him a set of very heavy binoculars from the Second World War he became more interested in watching the birds from afar.
Both of his parents were artistic – his mother a painter, his father a woodturner. His childhood was steeped in the art world, regularly attending craft fairs and galleries with his parents. He achieved his first taste of success at the age of ten, winning a competition on a cornflakes box by painting a combine harvester. He would go on to study at the Sir John Cass Art School in London.
‘Dawn to Dusk: Birds by Jim Moir celebrates the artist’s love of both birds and painting – a passion which is visible in every brushstroke, along with his knowledge of each species. He studies each bird before painting it, allowing him to capture their personality and quirks with his own unique blend of precision and wonder.
From garden birds to sea birds, the exhibition celebrates the magic and majesty of many of the UK’s most loved feathered friends, inviting us to appreciate their brilliance and importance through the beauty of paint.
Image © Pete Carr