‘JOKER’ (Acrylic on 100x100cm or 39x39” canvas, completed in 2022. Dedicated to Joaquin Phoenix & Todd Phillips for creating this incredible film.

 
 

Artist Statement

"Art has the power to render sorrow beautiful, make loneliness a shared experience, and transform despair into hope." –Brené Brown

Everything I do is in some way a kind of self-portrait, but it’s also a snap shot of a human life.

Whether the choices an artist makes are conscious or sub-conscious, every decision is coloured by their life experience. The accumulation of their decisions become a glimpse through the eye of that creator. Even the ideas that come through from somewhere else seem to be uniquely designed for that artist to express.

That’s my belief about artists, and it’s certainly true for me, that even when I don’t plan what I’m going to do, I’m guided by my intuition, my taste, my life, and the ‘witness’ who resides in my mind.

“Death is not the opposite of life but a part of it” –Haruki Murakami

My work seeks to explore the inherent suffering of the human experience, acknowledging the universal pain that we all share. My inspiration comes from personal experiences, as well as a deep fascination with the human psyche and the nature of existence.

My art is a place for viewers to reflect on their own experiences and find solace in this collective understanding. Through themes like fear, pain, femininity, existentialism and life and death, I aim to capture the raw and visceral emotions that are often left unspoken and hidden behind a facade of societal and familial conditioning and expectation.

Literal truth is boring, I am more concerned with emotional truth

Using both acrylic and oil I begin with a messy approach to overcome the hurdle and anxiety of a blank canvas. This “mess making” technique adds texture and adds to the narrative of the painting. It symbolises that there is more beneath the surface, and contributes to my overall aesthetic; creating a more interesting visual experience.

Life is chaotic, and so is my art.

My subjects transcend the limitations of clothing. I prefer to depict the naked body, often feminine but sometimes androgynous, in its archetypal essence and on a mythological dimension.

Ultimately, my goal as an artist is to create bright, beautiful work that resonates with people on a deeper level. To find meaning and connection in the midst of our shared pain and suffering.

Bio

Ash Darq is an Australian painter, now residing in a beautiful coastal town of the Northern Rivers, NSW.

Her art explores the darker, emotional side of the human experience through high chroma colours, symbolism, and the human figure.

Ash's subjects are powerful, resilient, and navigate their psychological landscapes with acceptance, never portrayed as victims.

Her work acknowledges the inherent pain of life while creating beauty and balance, and invites introspection. Eerie undertones and evocative compositions, Ash captures mystery and strength amidst the shadows of the mind, empowering viewers to embrace uncertainty and find meaning through our shared vulnerabilities and struggles.

Ash grew up on a small farm in the cooler climate of southern Victoria, spending most of her time reading, writing and drawing. Art for the longest time stayed on the periphery. In 2010 she started her Diploma of Fine Arts in Chisholm TAFE, completed in 2011. This was her first introduction to oil painting, sculpting and life drawing.

Once that ended, art yet again sat on the shelf as something to do to pass the time, but it wasn't until the end of 2015 that Ash realised this was her life’s calling. Since then she has spent all her time painting and drawing.

Over the years Ash has done numerous workshops with incredibly talented and established artists such as Ben Howe, Michael Fuchs, Ben Smith, Vanessa Lemen, Daniel Mirante, Olga Klimova, Kevin Campeau, Adam Scott Miller, Luis Tamani, as well as a mentorship with Chet Zar.

Having been part of the psychedelic electronic music scene since the mid 2000s, this too has been a big influence on Ash’s work. And in more recent years she has shown and live painted as part of most of the big festival galleries such as Rainbow Serpent Festival, Esoteric Festival, Wild Horses etc.


COMMISSIONS
Ash also creates ‘traditional’ portraiture for commissioned works.

See the commissions gallery for examples

Please get in touch via the contact page to discuss your commission, subject to t’s & c’s.

WORKSHOPS
Ash runs workshops from time to time, find out about them either via the VIP list or sign up to the wait list (where you will only hear about workshops, nothing else)

Join The Darq Army facebook group here.


 
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“No tree can grow to heaven unless its roots reach down to hell.” Carl Jung

CV

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2015 Breaking Pattern @ Francesca's Bar, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

2013 Stripped @ E55 Bar, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

FEATURE EXHIBITIONS

2023 IN SHADOW REALMS Show with Oscar Heathmore @ Black Spark Cultural Centre, Northcote, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

2021 EXUVIAE Show with Zoë Rayne, H.E.L. Waters & Dean Herlihy @ Honey Bones Gallery, Brunswick, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

2017 MAY: Liquid Dreamers - Framed Prints Exhibition, joint exhibition with Amanda Hayes @ The Workshop Bar, MELBOURNE AUSTRALIA

2017 APRIL: Liquid Dreamers joint print exhibition with Amanda Hayes @ Francesca's Bar, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

 

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2022 Journey Through Visions Group Show @ Cosmosis Gallery, BYRON BAY, AUSTRALIA

2022 Tiny Terrors V Group Show @ The Dark Art Emporium, Long beach, CALIFORNIA, USA

2022 OPHELIA Group Show @ Crucible Gallery, USA

2021 AESTHETHA Group Show @ The Dark Art Emporium, Long beach, CALIFORNIA, USA

2021 DAWN OF THE DARK ART SOCIETY Group Show @ Skull and Snake Tattoo Studio, North Berwick, MAINE, USA

2021 MOSS Deck Art Group Show @ Magnet Galleries, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

2021 Tiny Terrors IV Group Show @ The Dark Art Emporium, Long beach, CALIFORNIA, USA

2020 Heavy Aliens Group Show @ The Dark Art Emporium, Long beach, CALIFORNIA, USA

2020 Dark Planet Group Show @ Calvaria Gallery and Studios, Milleville, NEW JERSEY, USA

2020 Esoteric Festival Gallery, Donald, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2019 Horror Vacui Group Show @ Lupine Studios, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

2018/2019 Tanglewood Art Gallery, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2018 Exquisite Palette Show @ Tacit Gallery, Collingwood, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2018 EVOLVE Gallery @ Rainbow Serpent Festival, Lexton, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2016 Thug Life Magazine Group Show, PARIS, FRANCE

2014 Mornington Art Exhibition @ Peninsula Community Theatre, Mornington, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2014 Camberwell Art Show @ Swinburne University, Hawthorn, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2013 Camberwell Art Show @ Swinburne University, Hawthorn, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2013 Casey Art Show, Berwick, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2012 Christmas Exhibition @ Nicecat Gallery, Northcote, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2011 Little Landscapes @ Brightspace Gallery, St Kilda, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2010 TAFE Group Show @ Chisholm TAFE, Frankston, VIC, AUSTRALIA

2010 Little Landscapes @ Brightspace Gallery, St Kilda, VIC, AUSTRALIA

EDUCATION

Classical Oil Painting, Burringbar, NSW AUSTRALIA
2023 8 week workshop with Ben Smith

LAAFA, Los Angeles, USA
2020 4 week workshop with Vanessa Lemen

LA Academy of Figurative Art (LAAFA), Los Angeles, USA
2020 1 day ‘Imaginative Realism Portrait Paint’ workshop with Vanessa Lemen

Melbourne Studio of Art, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
2020 8 week semester, sculpture workshop with Ben Howe

Melbourne Studio of Art, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA
2019 1 day sculpture workshop with Ben Howe

Torri Superiore Eco Village, Torri, ITALY
2019 3 week intensive with Daniel Mirante, Olga Klimova and Kevin Campeau

Melbourne, VIC, AUSTRALIA
2019 Visionary Art Atelier with Michael Fuchs (9 day intensive)

Paradise One, NSW, AUSTRALIA
2019 Workshop with Luis Tamani (7 day course)

Paradise One, NSW, AUSTRALIA
2018 ‘Positive Visions’ workshop with Adam Scott Miller & Chris Dyer (9 day course)

The Art Student's League of New York, New York, USA
2016 John Park's Acrylic Workshop (2 day course)

Chisholm TAFE, Frankston, AUSTRALIA
2010 - 2011 Diploma of Visual Art

RMIT TAFE, Brunswick, AUSTRALIA
2007 Cert IV Printing & Graphic Arts (Multimedia)

 

EXPERIENCE

2019 - 2021 Resident Live Painter at The Breakfast Club, Club 161, Melbourne, AUSTRALIA

2019 Horror Vacui Group Show curator. 23 artists in total.

Live Painting at festivals; Rainbow Serpent Festival, Earth Frequency Festival, Esoteric Festival, WTWTA day festival.

Commercial Work - freelance graphic design

Commissioned artworks - Private collections in Australia, Italy, USA, Mexico

2008 Graphic Designer/ Desktop Publisher at Tract Consultants, Richmond, VIC, AUSTRALIA

Working on ‘Forest Families’ - completed in 2020