Nanette Moss
Nanaimo, British Columbia
Nanette Moss is an emerging abstract mixed media artist living in BC, Canada. Her work focuses on expressive representations of botanicals and landscapes.
MessageNanette Moss (b. 1973) is a Canadian and American artist living in Nanaimo, BC. Moss came to mixed media visual art via multi-media performance art. She applies the same approach of spontaneity within a framework to push her skills, combining unexpected elements to shift the perspective of the viewer.
Moss was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She painted one of the first murals in the iconic Graffiti Alley, depicting stages of personal evolution. Moss’ first crossover into performance art occurred while painting a mural about the birth of the universe during a string quintet concert. Struck by inspiration, she began to dance while painting herself into the backdrop. Her style developed in San Francisco with elaborate headdresses and costumes of bone, feathers, found fabric, body paint, mud, and plastic wrap. She referenced global myths and her own visions of universal dynamics of energy and matter.
Moss performed and lived in five states across the southwest and west coast before settling in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. She has called many alternative arrangements home: yurt, school bus, one room cabin, camper, tent and backpack. Moss’ experience with homelessness opened her eyes to unfounded biases, both internally and in society. She came to appreciate that each person has a story beyond her assumptions. Gratitude for every kindness, every comfort, every sunny day developed from this period with no keys, no phone, and no bank account.
Hearing loss in her twenties required major practical and mental adjustments. She withdrew from performance to focus on raising her two children and establishing a career in healthcare. Hiking and botanical drawing became her modes of meditation.
Moss returned to the stage for a deeply personal solo piece, Scar, which garnered a standing ovation. She danced to her own recorded spoken word depicting the journey from shame over her changing body to a celebration of an adventurous life. As each physical feature was addressed, a section of liquid latex was removed from her skin.
To balance stress from the healthcare field during covid, Moss picked up her brushes again. It was a homecoming. Health, self-love, connection, resilience, and nature are all essential components of Nanette’s life and work.
Statement
I am an abstract mixed media artist living and working on Vancouver Island in beautiful BC. I create layers of texture using acrylic paint, palette knife, brushstroke, sand and household materials. Over this I add contrasting features such as gold highlights, intricate line work, or soft botanicals in an expressionist style.
After years of bold performance art where my body and background were the canvases, I experienced hearing loss in my late twenties. This led me back to 2D art with a heightened focus on the visual and tactile senses. I use color, shape and texture to express emotion. My work offers uplifting energy to engage the mind and promote wellbeing through reflection.
Themes are transformation, the power of shifts in perspective, and healing through contemplation in nature. Influences include expressionism, botanical illustration and kintsugi.
Email: [email protected]
Copyright © 2023 Nanette Moss. All rights reserved. Nanaimo, BC, Canada.
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