About
David Kirkman’s mixed media abstract paintings are immersive; balancing energy, spontaneity, chaos and a lot of emotion, they are about life, humanity and freedom - of a state of mind; of excitement, and contemplation - full of contrasts. In a world of struggle and judgement David wants to bring escape, meditation and positivity, to create a thinking space for his viewers, to allow them to immerse themselves and escape from the everyday.
David’s passion for diving is an intriguing layer to his work, it expresses a lot of what he does within his paintings- the space to breathe when underwater, where nothing but your senses and breath matter…the quiet and the tapestry of the underwater, the unknown.
“To put yourself at the mercy of the ocean is to feel humbled and free. I draw inspiration from wanting to capture these feelings in paint. To create excitement through the brushstrokes, movement, contrast and colours and at the same time find peace within the moments they create. With each breath or mark you are embracing your own vulnerabilities and turning them into positive experiences. Whether under the water or on land, our world is colourful and chaotic but also mesmerising. I want my paintings to immerse and capture you in the space between uncertainty and acceptance.”
Biography:
David Kirkman was born in Leigh-on-Sea, England in 1985. He is an early career, self-taught, modern abstract and pop artist. He creates, bright, bold contrasting original paintings and mixed media prints. David has featured in galleries, Art Fairs and exhibitions across the UK these include; New Artist Fair London, Rochester Art Fair Kent, The Pie Factory Margate, The W Gallery Suffolk, Folkestone Art Gallery Kent, Hype Gallery Leigh-on-sea, DIG Gallery Margate and Under the Rainbow Exhibition, Bluewater. His work has featured in Artist talk Magazine, Connect Art Magazine and Haus-a-Rest Magazine. His work can be found in private collections around the UK and Europe.
EXHIBITION HISTORY:
GALLERIES 2022 - 2023
Folkstone Art Gallery, Folkestone Kent
Hype Gallery, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex
The W Gallery, Woodbridge, Suffolk
DIG Gallery, Margate
EXHIBITIONS:
AWARD WINNING BLUEWATER SHOW 28TH NOVEMBER - 30TH DECEMBER 2023
Bluewater, Kent ( Group Show)
THE PIE FACTORY – 20th – 25th October 2023
Group exhibition with DIG Gallery. Corn Exchange Rochester, Kent
ROCHESTER ART FAIR 6TH - 8TH OCT 2023
Corn Exchange Rochester, Kent
NEW ARTIST ART FAIR 29TH SEPT - 1ST OCT 2023
Truman Brewery, London
THE W GALLERY - 4TH August – 30TH November
Woodbridge, Suffolk
LEIGH ART TRAIL 8TH - 16TH JULY 2023
Shore Sales and Lettings, Leigh-on–sea
LEIGH COMMUNITY CENTRE, MENS MENTAL HEALTH CHARITY SHOW 25th JUNE – 4th AUGUST 2023, Group Show, Leigh-on–sea
BEXLEY HEATH 5 WEEK SHOW 29TH JUNE - 2ND AUGUST 2023
Hall Place, Bexley, Group Show, London
UNDER THE RAINBOW 15TH MAY - 19TH JUNE 2023
Bluewater, group show Kent
HOLY ART FAIR- 30TH MARCH - 2ND APRIL 2023
Holy Art Fair, Oxo Tower London
GROUP SHOW - 25TH - 26TH OF MARCH 2023
4 Local Artists, Mill Lane. A collective exhibition with 3 other local artists. Rayleigh
CREATE 98 - 28TH FEB - 5 WEEKS
Create 98 - 5 week solo show Leigh-on-sea, Essex
UTR EXHIBITION - FEB 14TH - 20TH MARCH 2023
Under The Rainbow - Group Exhibition, Bluewater Kent
TWENTY ONE - FEBRUARY 1ST - 28TH 2023
Solo Exhibition at Twenty One, Southend (collab with Focal Art Gallery)
SB STUDIOS - FEBRUARY 3RD - 5TH 2023
Exhibiting @ SB Art Studios, London – (Group Show
HOLY ART - JANUARY 13TH - 22ND, 2023
Exhibiting @ Holy Art Gallery, London – Group Show
UTR - NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2022
Under the Rainbow collective exhibition – Bluewater, Group Show
20TH NOV -24TH OF DEC 2022
Light Up Southend Christmas Art Trail
*Mixed media pieces combine more than one different mediums, in this case digital art and painting. Adding painted details creates modern, textured and original pieces. The first stage is to create a digital image, This starts by using an image of one of his original paintings as the background and then digitally draws and overlays Pooh and his friends. Once the image has been composed it is then print onto 280 gsm soft cotton paper using a fine art printer. The next part of the process is to add hand painted details onto each print, meaning each of the 30 prints in the edition is different and original from the next. Lastly each print is numbered and signed and comes with a certificate of authenticity.
