David Moore 1927 – 2003

David Moore was Australia’s most renowned and widely travelled photojournalist. His extraordinary archive covers both his homeland and the many countries and subjects he visited over a sixty-year career.

Moore commenced his professional photographic career in Sydney with Russell Roberts' studio in 1947. Later he worked with Max Dupain before travelling to London in 1951. He was the first Australian photojournalist to work consistently for the international picture magazines during their heyday in the 1950s. For seven years he photographed on assignment in the UK, Europe, Scandinavia, Africa and the USA, and his work was published in such journals as The Observer, Time-Life, Look, The New York Times and Sports Illustrated. He was one of only two Australian photographers included in the Family of Man exhibition in New York in 1955.

From 1958 Moore travelled the world for his New York agency, Black Star, working for Time-Life Books, National Geographic and corporate industrial clients.

From the 1970s onwards Moore was based in Sydney and here his work reflected his views of Australia. His photographs have been published in many books and are in many Australian collections including those of the Australian National Gallery. Collections are also held at the New York Museum of Modern Art, Le Bibliothéque Nationale in Paris, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC.

1947 Commenced professional photography with Russell Roberts' studio, Sydney

1948 Joined Max Dupain's studio, Sydney

1951-58 London, freelance photojournalist for publications including The Observer, Time, Life, Fortune & Look in the USA, UK, Europe and Africa

1958 Returned to Sydney to work for the US magazine & industrial market

1958 Represented by Black Star agency, New York

1958-76 Travelled USA, Canada, Europe, Antartica, Asia & Pacific on assignments

1976-83 Travelled to Singapore, Malaysia,Taiwan, Indonesia & Kenya for US clients

1984 Worked within Australia for Corporate, Architectural, Industrial and Design clients

1990 Speaker/presenter at Image Hong Kong 90 international convention

1993 Speaker/presenter at Image Hong Kong 93 international convention

1994 Awarded Australian Artists Creative Fellowship (two years)

1996 Publication of major volume To Build a Bridge

1997 The Unseen Images, a collection of 87 previously unknown photographs

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

1953 People in Photographs The Architectural Association, London

1958 Seven Years a Stranger, Macquarie Galleries, Sydney

1959 Seven Years a Stranger, The Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne

1976 David Moore Photographs, The Photographers' Gallery, London

1976 David Moore Retrospective 1940-76, Australian Centre for Photography, Sydney

1976 David Moore Retrospective 1940-76, Brummels Gallery, Melbourne

1976 David Moore Retrospective 1940-76, Orange, NSW Festival of Arts

1978 David Moore Retrospective 1940-1976, touring New Zealand

1977 Australia, Australian Embassy, Paris

1980 Photographs by Design, Axiom Gallery, Melbourne

1980 Exhibition, Macquarie Galleries, Sydney

1983 Photographs by Design 2, The Developed Image, Adelaide

1983 The Landscape of NSW, New South Wales Parliament House, Sydney

1985 Sydney at Mid-Century, AGNSW, Sydney

1985 Sydney at Mid-Century, Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne

1985 Sydney at Mid-Century, Developed Image, SA

1985 The CRA Pilbara Project, touring Asia & Japan

1986 Australian Artists 1960-85, Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne

1986 Australian Artists 1960-85, The Print Room, Sydney

1988 Sydney at Mid-Century, New South Wales House, London

1988 The Australian Functional Tradition, Christine Abrahams Gallery

1988 David Moore: Fifty Years of Photographs, Retrospective, AGNSW

1989 David Moore: Fifty Years of Photographs, regional galleries tour

1989 David Moore: Australian Photographer, Australian Embassy, Paris, France

1990 David Moore: A Survey 1947-89, Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne

1991 David Moore (The Kodak Collection) Puerto Rico; Shenyang, China

1993 Queenstown Landscapes, Tasmania, Image Hong Kong 93, Hong Kong

1993 Sydney Harbour, State Library of New South Wales

1993 Railways, Relics and Romance, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney

1995 Concert Works, The Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Opera House

1997 The Unseen Images, AGNSW, Sydney

1998 The Unseen Images, Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne

2001 The Unseen Images, Gold Treasury Museum, Melbourne

2005 Christine Abrahams Gallery, Melbourne

2005-06 David Moore: 100 Photographs, State Library of NSW, Sydney

2006-08 David Moore: A Vision, 1927 – 2003, Monash Gallery of Art, Melbourne; Bendigo Art Gallery; Shepparton Art Gallery; Albury Regional Art Gallery; Gold Coast City Art Gallery; Wollongong City Gallery; Mildura Arts Centre; Port Pirie Regional Gallery; La Trobe Regional Gallery

AWARDS

1965 Special Award The World and its People, Exhibition, NY World Fair

1967 Five First Prizes Pacific Photographic Fair, Melbourne

1971 First Prize Colour Section Nikon International Photographic Competition

1979 Commonwealth Award for Service to Professional Photography

1985 First Prize, the Denison Award for Architectural Photography

1989 Honorary Fellowship, Australian Institute of Professional Photography

1994 Awarded Australian Artists Creative Fellowship (two years)

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney

Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide

Australian Embassy, Beijing, China

Australian Embassy, Paris

Banyule Art Collection, Victoria

City of Waverley Collection, Victoria

CRA Limited, Melbourne

CSR Photography Project Collection, Sydney

Hamersley Iron Pty Limited, Perth

Health Insurance Commission, Canberra

Le Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris

Museum of Sydney

National Gallery of Australia, Canberra

National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne

National Library of Australia, Canberra

New South Wales Parliament House, Sydney

Novotel Hotel, Darling Harbour, Sydney

Parliament House, Canberra

State Library of New South Wales, Sydney

The Museum of Modern Art, New York

The National Maritime Museum, Sydney

The Perron Group, Sydney

The Philip Morris Collection

The Polaroid Collection, Cambridge, USA

The Polaroid Collection, Sydney

The Smithsonian Institute, Washington DC

© 2008 David Moore Photography Pty Ltd