Gerald Edward Moira (26 January 1867 – 2 August 1959) was an English painter who became best known for his
mural
A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage.
Word mural in art
The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...
s.
Gerald Moira was born in London, the son of a former Portuguese diplomat who became a miniature painter. He first exhibited at the
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purp ...
in 1891. His first commission for a mural was by
J. Lyons and Co. for the
Trocadero restaurant in
Shaftesbury Avenue
Shaftesbury Avenue is a major road in the West End of London, named after The 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. It runs north-easterly from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus. From Piccadilly C ...
, London. His other early commissions included the ceilings of the vestry and library of the
Unitarian Chapel, Liverpool, the board-room of
Lloyd's Register of Shipping
Lloyd's Register Group Limited (LR) is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and ...
, and paintings and stained glass for the
Central Criminal Court A Central Criminal Court refers to major legal court responsible for trying crimes within a given jurisdiction. Such courts include:
*The name by which the Crown Court is known when it sits in the City of London
*Central Criminal Court of England ...
in London. He also painted in
oil,
tempera
Tempera (), also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium, usually glutinous material such as egg yolk. Tempera also refers to the paintings done ...
, and
watercolour
Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to t ...
. Moira was principal of the
Edinburgh College of Art
Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of eleven schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Tracing its history back to 1760, it provides higher education in art and design, architecture, histor ...
from 1923 until 1932, president of the
Royal Institute of Oil Painters, vice-president of the
Royal Watercolour Society
The Royal Watercolour Society is a British institution of painters working in watercolours. The Society is a centre of excellence for water-based media on paper, which allows for a diverse and interesting range of approaches to the medium of wat ...
, a member of the
Royal West of England Academy
The Royal West of England Academy (RWA) is Bristol's oldest art gallery, located in Clifton, Bristol, near the junction of Queens Road and Whiteladies Road. Situated in a Grade 2* listed building, it hosts five galleries and an exhibition progra ...
, and a founder member of the National Portrait Society.
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References
Further reading
* Harold Watkins,
The Art of Gerald Moira', London 1922.
1867 births
1959 deaths
19th-century English painters
English male painters
20th-century English painters
Painters from London
English muralists
Members of the Royal West of England Academy
20th-century English male artists
19th-century English male artists
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