Darien is a professional Melbourne based artist with over 30 years of exhibiting and teaching experience.  His work includes drawing, printmaking, painting and sculpture, all developed from observational studies, and mostly of the human body.

He says “These are not idealised bodies.  These images are about the subtlety of a gesture – the very personal way someone will sit, or turn. The way each person moves, leans or walks is unique.  This is about what it means to be human, about what it is for each of us to be contained in a body. There is a universality in this which connects us, but beauty is a product of individuality and circumstance.”

Darien’s work has been described as ‘sensitive and well observed’ with ‘a skilled drawing ability and subtle use of colour’.  His love of paint is obvious and of this he says: “Great paintings have never been purely about imagery – the mark, the colour and the intensity are all equally important.  Great paintings are about paint.”

Similarly sculpture is not purely about the subject. The process and the material are integral to the work, and a stance or a gesture can convey a mood or elements of a personality beyond a mere likeness.