Gavin Mouldey: Whanganui-born illustrator has great breadth of talent

Gavin Mouldey and Bowie the dog with the mural he painted on the front of the gallery he used to have in Wellington's Island Bay. Photo / K Mouldey

Whanganui-born artist Gavin Mouldey’s work is on show at the Lockett Gallery on Guyton St this month.

His book illustrations, drawings and three-dimensional works are on display, along with copies of the books featuring his work.

The latest is Mia & Leo Go Wild! written by Gillian Candler and there are also copies of Maria Gill’s beautiful 2017 book Toroa’s Journey, illustrated by Mouldey and featuring a fold-out depiction of the albatross’s incredible wing span.

Mouldey now lives in Waikanae with his family and has children, aged 10 and 8.

“I enjoyed working on Mia & Leo Go Wild! because the characters are the same ages as my children and Gillian is a great storyteller,” Mouldey says.

As a teenager attending Whanganui High School, Mouldey was inspired by American Gary Larson’s Far Side cartoons and produced his own single-panel works that were printed in the Whanganui Chronicle. He worked at hugely popular teen publication Tearaway Magazine, produced in Whanganui.

“My mum Beryl worked as a proofreader at the Chronicle and used her influence to help get my work published,” said Mouldey.

“They had my designs printed on mugs that were used as reader prizes and that gave me an immense confidence boost.”

Mouldey describes himself as a “doodler”, a description that Lockett Gallery owner Lesley Stead said falls far short of describing the breadth of his talent.

“It leaves it to us to appreciate the extraordinary talent of this artist, painter, illustrator and graphic designer,” she said.

“His art is entertaining, interesting, and varied, to the point where you would think more than one artist was involved, but it’s all Gavin. His work in Toroa’s Journey, for example, contrasts in style with his illustrations in Mia & Leo Go Wild!, and again with Connected magazine.”

Mouldey has also done hundreds of illustrations for school journals and other commissions. He is currently mapping New Zealand’s volcanoes for GNS Science and finds the work fascinating he said.

“There were 53 volcanoes in Auckland alone and the work provides a picture of how they would have looked before the city was built.”

The environmentally-themed models are a relatively new hobby project Mouldey started while sorting his recycling.

Before moving to Waikanae, Mouldey lived in Wellington’s Island Bay, where he had his Dittybox Gallery with a distinctive sea creatures mural on the front wall.

He’s delighted that Whanganui now has an illustrator gallery where he can display his work.

Mouldey’s work will be on show at the Lockett Gallery in Guyton St opposite Paige’s Book Gallery until November 30.

Liz Wylie is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. She joined the editorial team in 2014 and regularly covers stories from Whanganui and the wider region. She also writes features and profile stories.