Richard Moglia is not an easy person to describe in a few words. That’s because he has so many facets, so many interests, so many careers. He’s a personal trainer and a national champion bodybuilder. He’s a certified veterinary tech and for 12 years ran a successful business as a farrier – an expert in horse’s hoof care. He’s a graphic artist who ran his own advertising agency. He’s an award-winning, highly successful fantasy illustrator.
And now he’s a crusader for animal rights.
“I’ve always been an advocate for conservation,” he said in his basement studio in Secaucus, crowded with large paintings of primates, alongside commissioned fantasy works and portraits of famous people (and monsters). “Since I was a very small child, I’m a huge animal lover. I started painting wildlife, and gallery owners who saw my wildlife painting started asking for that. When you have a passion about something, it shows.”
Animal rights activists saw his work and contacted Moglia to ask if he could help them out. “It’s my pleasure to do something, since I’m not a naturalist,” he said. “The most famous group is Save the Chimps. They have an island in Fort Pierce, Florida, with bands of chimpanzees living wild. They saw my paintings and asked if I can do work for them, creating prints to sell to raise money for the nonprofit.”
Thus began his newest career. His goal? “Raising awareness of the fact that chimpanzees and gorillas are almost being wiped out completely. Their environments in Africa are being wiped out. They themselves are being wiped out because there’s such poverty that the indigenous people are eating them. It’s just a matter of time before gorillas and chimpanzees are completely finished.”
Developing his craft
Born in 1961 in the Bronx, Moglia received a master’s degree in art at the School of Visual Arts in New York.
“When I went to college I was worried about making a living so I went for the commercial end,” he said. “I was afraid to go for the fine art aspect. It always seemed to be very competitive.”
He took jobs as a paste-up artist and graphic designer for different firms (including, very briefly, the Hudson Reporter), and built up his skills and resume before he opened his own advertising firm in Hoboken about 1990. Then came the desktop publishing revolution.
“Computers kicked in and people started doing it for themselves at home,” he said. But by then he was off on another career track anyway. “By the year 2000 I had gotten certified in many different things.” Among them was personal trainer, “which consumed several years because I was making good money training people.”
“You can’t buy products that destroy the environment, the jungle. Every time you see a piece of ivory, an elephant has died.” – Rich Moglia
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That led to an apprenticeship by 2005, with Moglia working at Murphy’s studio in Hillsboro, New Jersey. “He took my skills, honed them, brought them up one thousandfold, showed me all his secrets,” Moglia remembered. “Through him I was introduced to [legendary fantasy artist] Boris Vallejo, that was part of his clan. I met them all. It’s nice because the artists really respect each other. It’s a competitive industry, but not like you’d think.”
With his new skills Moglia soon began to win contests and get commissions for book covers and other work.
Developing his vision
“When I was a small child, the very first movie my mother took me to at Loews Paradise was ‘Born Free,’ an amazing movie,” Moglia said. “Ever since then I’ve realized the importance of conservation. My mother was into it. She was a kind person who’d go out and rescue stray dogs.”
Moglia has in the past done paintings as fundraisers for dog and cat charities. He is a master of detail, with highly realistic renderings and expressive eyes. Many of his canvases are huge. While his fantasy paintings depict imaginary scenes, his nature work is often taken from photographs of actual animals.
A fan of Jane Goodall since he was a child, Moglia painted a portrait of her and sent it to her institute. “She’s a very busy woman, 80 years old, travels 300 days a year trying to save these animals,” he said. “She’s unbelievable, the bravery she’s displayed in her life. Recently she was speaking and she broke down at a huge event because it overwhelmed her how the faster we progress, the more things are destroyed.”
Yao Ming is another hero for his crusading work to educate China on the need to conserve nature. “This particular man, talk about making a difference,” said Moglia. “He came forward against rhino horns and ivory, and he has such power because he’s so respected. The Chinese government is going to ban the purchase and sale of ivory because of him.”
Now Moglia is trying to do his part to spread the word. So what can people do?
“Most important, to stop the poachers, the demand has to be destroyed,” he said. “You can’t buy products that destroy the environment, the jungle. Every time you see a piece of ivory, an elephant has died.”
He acknowledges that starving people are forced to eat whatever is available, and strongly advocates for relief in Africa. “Africa has seen nothing but tragedy for a very long time,” he said.
Keeping busy
Living in Secaucus with his wife and 14-year-old son, Moglia uses a computer to visualize his layouts and refine his concepts, then sets to work with oils and a brush to craft his paintings entirely by hand. He still visits the studio in Hillsboro to work there on Sundays.
And because that’s hardly enough career for him, he also manages a side business in Jersey City, grooming dogs at the West Side Animal Clinic.
But that’s not all. “There’s a place in Secaucus called Our Lady of Ink Tattoo,” he said. “They saw my paintings, had me come down there for a meeting, and offered me a position.”
The company is paying for Moglia to get licensed and certified as a tattooist. “What’s happening is a lot of artists are transitioning to doing tattoos,” he said. “They already have this knowledge of blending colors.”
Is that it? Any more careers in the offing?
Moglia smiled. “What can I say? I don’t like television.”
Art Schwartz may be reached at arts@hudsonreporter.com.