At first glance, Bella McGoldrick’s drawing practice and jet-set lifestyle seem to conflict.
Each of her photo-realistic art pieces, which capture every mark, crinkle and light reflection of a given object, takes up to 200 hours to complete. It’s a practice that requires meditative stillness and a winning temperament in
Instead of being an interruption of her painstaking process, Bella says this constant travel has been inspirational.
“It is now the basis of my work. Collections and artworks are inspired by where I am, they always have been, but now I have been intentionally manipulating that to be more diverse and, I guess, more extreme,” she says, speaking to Viva from Italy.
Bella’s drawing practice, before she began her current global tour, was refined in Manhattan, New York, where she worked as an intern for major fashion brands like Rag & Bone, Lowe Roche and Phillip Lim. The artist had made her way to the Big Apple after completing studies in fashion at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and Parsons in Paris. In NYC, she started to perfect her ultra-detailed style, before going on to pursue her drawing practice full-time with gallery representation from Tappan Collective. Now, she’s running the business with her own two hands.
Of course, Bella had been drawing before this professional turn. The artist says positive encouragement from those around her was really motivating.
“I was always drawing as a kid, early on I would get noticed for it, which I loved, so I kept at it. Realism came pretty naturally as I wasn’t technically trained, so I would just draw things around me.”
She attributes an element of her elaborate and patient approach to the values of New Zealand-based design.
“I think New Zealanders have such a keen appreciation for design and style, it’s impossible not to feel when you’re there. I think being a smaller country there’s more of an appreciation for a slower design. I hope I reflect that esteem for the slower, more sustainable way of design. My work certainly takes a long time for its intended outcome.”
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Advertise with NZME.Aspects of Bella’s fashion studies have also affected her artistic approach. She says she is “very conscious of the relationship the art will have with its audience” and connects this to the functional considerations key in fashion design.
One of Bella’s first big collections captured small objects within the overwhelming New York City sights, which she took in throughout her fashion industry internships. Captured by the objects she felt were emblematic of Manhattan, Bella put her pencil to paper and worked to record pieces of interest. That body of work includes hyperrealistic pieces of pizza slices, bodega coffee cups, a stacked lox bagel and pocket-worn lottery tickets.
Capturing the pieces that colour the environment of a specific location has continued through Bella’s travels. The artist says that travelling has become an integral part of her practice, with the unfamiliarity providing a “hit of newness that leads to new work”.
She continues, “When I started I was in New York City and you can see my work was heavily influenced by it. And I feel the same today, with new cultures and new visual stimuli for me to try and pay my respects to by recreating it in my art.”
With so much travelling, the pages of the artist’s website have become a striking, unconventional travel diary. Each drawing presents a clue as to where Bella has set down her suitcase.
Her last collection, aptly named Black Water, was inspired by the countless caffeinated products she’s consumed around the globe and was drawn mostly in Lombok, Indonesia. Before that, she spent time in Mexico City, sketching textural tacos. Other souvenir sketches include Santa Teresa and Barbados.
Her upcoming collection Puglia will serve up a visual feast inspired by Italy, crumbs and all. Bella says she often captures objects that she feels “an affinity for” and notes that Italy “tastes incredible”, which has inspired her latest food-centric approach.
While the artist tends to draw pieces that she has an affinity for, there is also a visual drive to Bella’s pick of subject matter. She notes that “textures are super important, things that bounce light or give dimension”, as well as colours that please her pallet. You can see this in the piece from the Puglia collection, which has pleasant tones, delicate shadows and pops of golden yellow.
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Providing such sharp and exaggerated attention to her chosen objects transform their meaning, giving them sweet gravitas. Crumpled food wrappers, used cutlery and discarded crumbs become things that are emblematic of place and representative of a precious moment in time. Bella offers a moment of pause in her works and makes the ordinary feel special — encouraging the viewer to engage with more care and attention.
When capturing the objects, she says she wants to centre items that may have been missed or discarded.
“I hope I shed a new light on things that have been overlooked, and give them their moment to hold a room.”
Bella says it’s “the biggest win” when someone feels a connection to her artworks, but that it can sometimes be unexpected.
“It always surprises me but gives me such fulfilment when people feel personal about something I have felt personal to and therefore have drawn ... that makes me feel connected to the viewer in a way too.”
Creating harmony between her intricate art and worldly adventures, Bella produces pieces that find excitement in the ordinary. Her drawings leave you wondering not about the pieces themselves, but all the wonderful, storied contexts that might surround them.
Where to next for Bella? The storied landmarks and vibrant streets of Istanbul — where she’ll likely stumble upon an object totally typical and create something unexpectedly exceptional.
