Donovan Stanford

I am a contemporary mixed-media artist based in Dorset, United Kingdom, with over 25 years of experience working in the visual arts space.
I spent much of my childhood surfing on the coasts of South Africa, developing an enduring connection to the ocean and the elemental forces of nature. Those early experiences continue to influence the way I see, experience and interpret the natural world.
After completing my Diploma in Fine Art, I established my own retail gallery and studio space in Cape Town.

Working primarily with acrylic and oil on canvas, I create large-scale, atmospheric landscapes and seascapes that explore mood and emotion. My paintings often feature expansive skies, arid vistas and windswept panoramas, aiming to capture its essence and the visceral emotional response it evokes in me.

My process is physical. I build and manipulate surfaces through dripping, pouring, scraping, spraying and wiping, allowing texture, movement and spontaneity to become integral to the work. I am particularly drawn to the fundamental forces of nature: the sound of the wind or the darkness of a storm.

From my studio in Dorset, I continue to explore the emotional and elemental qualities of landscape through a process that sits between representation and abstraction. Memory, material and sensory experience guide each piece, allowing the painting to evolve through an instinctive dialogue between myself and the work.