John Moffat

Biography | Gallery

John F. Moffat was born in Inverness, Scotland in 1947 and emigrated  to St. Catharines Ontario, as a child.  His formative years were spent in the valleys and alleys of Merritton and St. Catharines rummaging through old buildings and  factories, looking for salvage and treasures.  His early explorations through abandoned industrial sites piqued his interest in capturing the essence of the forgotten or overlooked beauty, he saw in those surroundings.

In the early years of John’s career he received Ontario Arts Council grants, a Canada Council Arts Bursary and Short Term Grant. He also participated in the Ontario Arts Council “Artist in the Schools” Program.

He is a self taught artist working mainly in acrylic, but occasionally in oil, watercolour and ink drawing. He began working as an artist in 1968.  In 1969 he became a founding member of the Niagara Artists Co-Op.  He worked closely with John Boyle, Ray Woodworth and Mike Hewko on many projects and over the years he held every board position.

In the early 80's  John moved to Peterborough. He became involved with Artspace, in various capacities, including construction labourer, lead-hand, foreman, exhibition installer, volunteer, board member and artist. Later he worked with David Bierk, as a studio assistant.

Moffat’s early St. Catharines  paintings were based on cityscape rooftop views, dissected images of figures/buildings, bridges, the Mansion House , the Welland House, the Lancer Restaurant and the parking garages, surrounding his downtown studio. Moving to a farmhouse near Peterborough, Ontario, gave him a fresh source of images. He continued to mine his local environment for ideas and did not have to look too far for his next subject, hydro towers. These giant structures were painted  individually or as massive corridors cutting through the rolling hills, on the acreage surrounding his house. A move to Ottawa in the late 80's inspired new drawings and paintings of the National Capital Region’s non-tourist destinations such as  hydro towers, quarries, radio towers, the “City Centre” building, train yards and rail bridges.  John is now working on images from his travels and his residence in Perth, Ontario, on the river, to the left of the water tower.

His work can be found in Rodman Hall Arts Centre, Brock University, The Provincial Court House in St. Catharines, The Canada Council Art Bank, The Department of Foreign Affairs, The City of Ottawa and numerous private collections.