Art Quench Presents; Artist and Photographer Darren Pearson
Our imagination can be such a fun place to escape to. Letting go of ourselves in the adult world and transforming back into a child like state just for a little while we believe is very healthy for the soul. Artist and photographer Darren Pearson helps us to play with our imagination again. He offers wonderful staging in his work for the viewer to immediately step into a make believe adventure. We here at Art Quench think Darren’s work is inspiring and creative and we are happy to help promote such a talented artist who also happens to have a great spirit. Please enjoy this viewing of Darren’s work.
Saber toothed Cat
Happy Campers
Lights
Octopus
Velociraptor
More on Darren…
My name is Darren Pearson, I’m 29 years old, from San Diego, CA.
I live in Los Angeles, CA where I work full-time as an illustrator for the clothing brand ‘True Religion’. I create designs for their graphic tees during the day and at night I roam the streets of Los Angeles and surrounding areas in search of the perfect setting for my light sculptures.
The first light painting I did was in October of 2007, after I came across a collaborative image from Pablo Picasso and Gjon Mili titled ‘Picasso draws a centaur’. A photographer friend explained to me how the image was created through use of ‘long exposure’. The combination of a technical field like photography, which captures reality, and the impressionistic field of painting, which captures a feeling, is really what floored me about this new medium.
After doing a few experiments, I realized I needed to buy my own camera equipment and start doing this kind of art more and more. So down the rabbit hole I went.
I didn’t have much photography experience when I first started, but I had gone to college at UC Santa Cruz for a degree in Film and a Minor in History, and I had an idea of composition and how to tell a story cinematically.
I first started with stick figures; soon I attempted more complicated illustrations. Over the years I came to a point where I would create complex structures within different environments. Sometimes I would wing it, other times I was more strategic in terms of what I wanted to accomplish and would sketch out a plan on paper before attempting a piece.
The environment itself is the most influential factor when producing an image. I like looking at a scene and asking myself ‘what belongs here?’ Or ‘what doesn’t belong here at all?’ Sometimes getting to a location can be difficult, requiring miles of hiking, some climbing, and definitely a bit of adventure.
Whenever I travel, I bring my gear and try to take advantage of the landscape. It inspires me, and keeps my ear to the ground for historic and cultural influences that shape the region. Right now, I’m in Southern California, and we have surfers, skateboarders, bikers, graffiti artists, and interesting Spanish architecture. It’s reflected in some of my most recent work: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dariustwin/sets/72157629268207905/detail/
In the future, I would like to visit strange and interesting environments around the world. I have a travel wish list I plan on tackling soon as part of the ‘Indiana Jones of light painting’ life I wish to lead. I’d love a chance to visit ‘the Catacombs’ in Paris, the ‘Hill of Crosses’ in Lithuania, ‘Xilitla’ in Mexico, and the ‘underground temple’ in Japan.
– D
Be Inspired! ...and Get ArtQuenched! 
I’ve tried light painting, simple stuff. These light sculptures are simply amazing.
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