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Chance is the most important element in Dan's work. He is in essence trying to balance a series of marks, colours and figurative images. Dan uses portraiture from British history as a starting point. He wants the work to evolve - there is only a loose plan for a piece of work and this can rapidly change at any stage of the painting process. He doesn’t use sketchbooks to experiment and plan beforehand; this is all carried out on canvas. He works on 10 - 15 pieces at any one time. He can’t bear to waste paint so he has loose scraps of paper, canvases and prints that he will add together. He could never paint in a photorealistic manner - the act of reworking, refining and often defacing an artwork is what keeps it fresh and exciting for him. A narrative or a meaning often comes to the work at a later stage when the subjects begin to balance and several layers of paint are built up.
He use British figures usually from royal, military or notable individuals. The idea started as he feels the history of the British nation underpins everything we do in the UK, how we view the rest of the world and interact with foreigners. These themes were brought closer to the forefront of Dan's mind with recent events such as Brexit and contemporary issues of immigration. The artist travelled a lot and learnt a great deal about the view of the British people through talking to locals abroad. It made him realise how the UK still has a strong class system and how the stiff upper lip of the nation's history prevails. Dan sees the paintings as replicating contemporary society through layers of paint and marks merged together with classical elements of portraiture and figures from history. Overall his work represents his view of how the Englishmen are trying to make sense of British identity and how confusion about the future in the EU and in the world is dictated by a colonial and military past.
2014 ‘ART ROBOTS’ collages at Urban Outfitters, London.
2013: ‘Foxes and Hounds’, The Workhouse Gallery, Harrogate
2013 ‘New Work’, Cimmermann, Harrogate
2011: Works on Paper, Urban Outfitters, London
2008: ‘New Work’, Cimmermann, Harrogate
Group Shows
2014 TOAF October, Old Truman Brewery, London.
2014 ‘Opening Exhibition’ Red Propeller Gallery, Kingsbridge, Devon
2014 ‘What Have You Seen? Series’ Damside Mill, Haworth.
2014 OP Exhibition at Pocklington School, York
2014 TOAF April, Ambika P3, London
2013 ‘Within and Without’ Leeds City Gallery, Leeds
2013 TOAF XMAS pop-up. Ben Sherman, London
2013 Bethlehem Boys Club Exhibition, London
2013: TOAF October, Old Truman Brewery, London
2013 Group Show, Burton Agnes, East Riding
2013: TOAF May, Ambika P3, London
2012: The Workhouse Gallery, Harrogate
2009 – 2011: The Affordable Art Fair, London
2007: Smiths Private Dining Room, London
2003: ‘Winter Exhibition’, Dean Clough Galleries, Halifax
2003: ‘Autumn Exhibition’, Thompsons Gallery, London
2003: The Wave Gallery, Kendal
2002: ‘People Need People’, Gascoigne Gallery, Harrogate
2002: ‘BP Portrait Award’, The National Portrait Gallery, London
2001: ‘BP Portrait Award’, The National Portrait Gallery, London
2001: ‘New Sensations’, The Curwin Gallery, London
Commissions/murals
2014 Portrait of Dr. Fred Lim. Devonshire Place, London
2013 Portrait of Head Girl and Head Boy. Pocklington School, York
2013 Portrait of Pete Edwards, Head of Art, Pocklington School, York
2013 Wall art for Hackney Downs Studios for ‘Caged’ Exhibition, London
2012 Mural for Templeworks, Leeds.
Recent
‘Heads’. Studio One Gallery. August 2015
‘Selected works’. Plus artist talk and mural. Rise Gallery. July 2015
‘Bob Dylan Exhibition’. September 2016. Pocklington arts centre.
‘Spring Exhibition’, March 2016. The Biscuit Factory, Newcastle.
‘Northern Portrait Award’ Finalist, April 2016. The Biscuit Factory, Newcastle.
‘Bob Dylan Exhibition’. September 2016. Pocklington arts centre.
‘Marching On’ solo exhibition, October 2016 at Rise Gallery, London.
’50 Years of Sgt Peppers’ may 2017 at Pocklington Arts Centre.
2017
150 years of E. Tautz June 2017
‘Semblance exhibition’, July 2017 at Well Hung Gallery, London.
‘Autumn Exhibition’, October 2017, The Biscuit Factory, Newcastle.
Moniker art fair with Rise Gallery, London. October 2017
‘Borderline’ exhibition November 2017
‘Xmas Show’. Rise Gallery. December 2017
2018
‘Northern Soul’. Solo exhibition at the Biscuit Factory Gallery, Newcastle.
‘Bethlehem Boys Club’ exhibition. Sidney and Matilda Gallery, Sheffield.
Various works displayed at Art Of Protest Gallery, York, Rise Gallery Croydon, Almost Perfect, Tokyo, Red Propeller Gallery, Devon and The Biscuit Factory Gallery, Newcastle.
2019
‘2nd Birthday bash’. Art Of Protest Gallery, York.
‘Under the Influence’. Sidney and Matilda Gallery, Sheffield.
‘Group show’. Almost Perfect Gallery, Tokyo, Japan.
Various works displayed at Art Of Protest Gallery, York, Rise Gallery Croydon, Almost Perfect, Tokyo, Red Propeller Gallery, Devon and The Biscuit Factory Gallery, Newcastle.
Murals
February 2015 ‘Bret Easton Ellis’. Croydon
May 2015 ‘tut tut’. Croydon
August 2015. Mural in Rise Gallery stairwell. Croydon
August 2016 ‘General Disorder’. Bushwick, Brooklyn. New York
October 2016 ‘Shelter From The Storm’ Croydon.
July 2017. ‘Roll On, Steamroller’. Mural in York with Art Of Protest Gallery, York.
July 2017. ‘Tangled’. Mural with Rise Gallery, Croydon.
July – August 2017. Beirut. 6 murals in Aley, Beirut including a work in a Lebanese jail, a 7 metre wall and several works on a bridge on the road to Damascus.
October 2017. Mural collaboration with Mark McClure. Rise Gallery, Croydon.
2018 Mural at Brew York, York organised by Art Of Protest Gallery, York.
2018 George Stephenson mural in Newcastle organised by The Biscuit Factory Gallery, Newcastle.
