Artists We Love: Daniella Mooney

INTERVIEWED BY Lindi Brownell Meiring

Multi-talented Nelspruit-born, Cape Town-based artist Daniella Mooney, whose work is part of the permanent collections of Kentucky’s 21C Museum, Ellerman House and Zeitz, chats to us about painting, greatest achievements and creating.

What do you love most about creating?

Having the chance to do things differently.

What has been your greatest artistic achievement so far?

It’s a tough question because it’s difficult to separate all the works from each other. I’d say my greatest artistic achievement has been to be able to keep at it and make a career of doing what I love. It’s been a huge privilege being given the opportunities I have, so I’m happy that I’ve tried to make the most of them.

From sculpture and installations through to painting, your talents seem boundless. Which medium do you find you’re most drawn to?

In a way, each medium gives me some respite from the other, so it depends on how I’m feeling really. I always used to proudly identify as being a sculptor but now it’s all mixed into one. Sculpting can be very labour intensive and time consuming so I have really come to enjoy the – let’s call it gentler – process of painting. Painting for me is a great space for quick experimentation and play, and I have found that it has helped me loosen up a bit more when sculpting.

Your paintings often feature calming natural landscapes. Are these works inspired by specific places? If so, where?

The landscapes I paint are mostly from my hikes around the Western Cape mountains. My close friends are also avid hikers and take really beautiful photos of their hikes so I’m often inspired to paint from their adventures too. 

Do you have any exciting projects coming up?

I have a few small group shows and am busy working on an outdoor installation but most importantly lots of exciting hikes to get to – I’m doing the Tsitsikamma soon which I’m looking forward to.

View more of Daniella’s work at daniellamooney.tumblr.com.