ABOUT THE FATHER BILL MOORE FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS

The Father Bill Moore Foundation for the Arts is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focused on supporting emerging artists in Southern California. Creating an intersection between art and profit the Foundation works with career artists to engage them in an artist community where they will gain a comprehensive understanding of the art business. Through mentorship and community, recipients will have the opportunity to develop their art-business acumen under the guidance of industry professionals.

As an artist, the transition from studio to marketplace can be difficult to navigate without proper guidance. Turning raw talent into art industry literacy can be a daunting process, and the Father Bill Moore Foundation aims to ease the transition. The Foundation endeavors to work as a creative support system, promoting artists with diverse resources. Providing insight into art marketability, pricing, commissions, contracts, and editioning The FBM Foundation empowers recipients to navigate the art world and monetize their work. The program culminates in a gallery showing, where benefactors can see the progress made over the course of a year. The Father Bill Moore Foundation aims to support talented artists in developing their discipline and successfully navigating the art industry.

The Father Bill Moore Foundation for the Arts honors the life and work of Father Bill Moore SS.CC.,
supporting his dedication to mentorship in art.

ABOUT FATHER BILL MOORE SS.CC.

I was born in Glendale, California. My childhood was shaped by the fact that my father was a combat veteran of World War II.  After his war time service, and subsequent return home from combat, my mother always said that my father had changed.  He was still a kind and gentle man, however after the war my father soon sought refuge in places that he found to be peaceful and beautiful. Without a doubt, the deserts of Southern California were those places. And those outings with my father shaped much of my art career. In the desert, we sought out rocks and formations of the earth to discuss what we had seen. Many people find the desert to be dry and riddled with death, however, I found the colors to be more alive than any city I had ever visited. Red Iron Oxide is found in many parts of the Mojave desert and this the color of rust is for me a color of life.

My love of found objects was also born in the desert. I would collect anything that struck me as vital and bring it home with me. Many years later I began to include a found object in each of my paintings. After I graduated with degrees in both Fine Art and Theology, the idea of using these found objects as a point of redemption came alive. I love taking items from the desert or the streets of Los Angeles and incorporating them into my artwork. Even if the objects are so subtle that the viewer may not even see them, they create an energy in the piece that aligns itself with my faith and my theory that all things can be redeemed. I also love textures to exist in my work, and I often encourage viewers to touch my paintings, because the oil of human hands makes the plastics in the acrylics that I use that much more human. And when you can touch artwork, you develop a viewpoint rarely accessible in the modern art world.

When I began to paint and create my art, I did not know where I was headed as and artist. Yet what remained important to me was that I was beginning my calling as a painter. After I began painting and working as a Priest, the idea came to me to create works that could benefit the members of my community. It always seemed to me that the public was constantly being asked to support either museums, or other cultural institutions. So I decided to take that theory and turn it on its head and use my art to support my community. I do not receive payments for my art, all the monies go directly to my congregation to help others in need.