Darcy McCrae is an Australian artist, based between the Northern Rivers and the Gulf Of Carpentaria, making paintings with motivations from folk, primitive and naive art. A self taught painter, Darcy creates works using mainly acrylics on canvas and linen to create bold artworks in a lo-fi naive style. His work has been exhibited in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and his hometown of Mullumbimby.
Tell us a bit about what a day may look like for you as an artist. Where are you based and what are some of the things that you do in your daily routine? Tell us about your morning rituals, your cup of tea/coffee, plants, etc!
The paintings in this series were created while living in Doomadgee, an Aboriginal shire in the Gulf of Carpentaria in Queensland. My paintings schedule is based around my time not working, I usually work all day and paint all night, spending my weekends paintings on the floor of my kitchen which has the best light.
How did you start your creative practice and why? Are you self-taught, an art student, a full-time artist, etc?
I am a self taught artist, starting out drawing in high school and experimented along the way with different mediums and surfaces. Reading the books has taught me some techniques, also a lot of trial and error is involved.
Have you got a studio/creative workplace? Tell us a bit about where you create and some of the significant things that support and inspire your practice.
I don’t have a studio at the moment, when I live up north I paint on the floor on canvas rolls I get freighted up from Melbourne, and once the works are completed I post them to Gareth at Blue Boy framing in Mullumbimby to be stretches and framed. When I’m back on the East Coast, I paint where I can, usually under friends’ houses or anywhere with a table. It can be challenging not having a space but I think you need to be able to work anywhere, it’s not something that can wait for inspiration it should be done all the time. I usually get an idea of what I will paint and work it out with charcoal on paper, then work quickly on canvas to keep it raw and natural. I’m inspired by the colour and feeling of things I see in the places I live.
What are some of the ideas that you explore in your work and the mediums that you have chosen to work with?
My paintings contain a lot of still life, female figures and animals. I paint my wife a lot in my work and the still life paintings are from photos I take. These subjects have been represented in painting for an age and I try to create a version of this in a way that is representative of my emotional state at the time – subconsciously or otherwise. Painting in acrylic allows me to work fast to capture the imagined image and as it is fast drying, it makes it easy to transport while I move around.
In an increasingly digitized world, how important is your online presence? And what are some of the things that you consider when marketing your work?
Having an online presence is definitely a big part of the process for me. It allows me to have a direct relationship to people who like my work. Instagram has really become a platform for emerging artists and has helped me to meet other artists and galleries which I never would have otherwise. Living in an isolated part of the country, it is pretty amazing to send current works out to be seen online to people around the world. I don’t really have a game plan when it comes to marketing online, I just post new paintings and at the moment people have a positive response which I am thankful for.
Let us know about any current/future projects – Have you got anything planned in the near future?
This year, I have been lucky enough to have the time to make a lot of paintings and to work on a larger scale. I have new works currently being framed to send to galleries in Sydney and Melbourne which is very exciting. I’m working on a new paint series and also some wooden relief carvings which will be for an exhibition in the new year.
Visit our Stockroom to view our collection of works by Darcy McCrae.