Home | Daniel Nolan's Studio

Daniel Nolan

Chicago, IL

Medium:
Children’s Art
Mixed Media

Direct Sales: 13
Auctions: 0

artist works
media interviews
artists' statement
white papers
exhibition reviews

about the artist

I work to create images that spark emotions or encourage a different way to view the world around us, working primarily with acrylics on canvas or resin. I was trained as a nuclear engineer and as my career had twists and turns, I was continually painting. My technical side often is evident in my paintings. Today, I am a professional artist residing in Chicago. As a self-taught artist I am constantly evolving with my work. Through many years of painting and experimenting with new styles, I am striving to create a look and feel that is uniquely my own that calls to me. My recent work using resin at the moment feels like a direction to explore further. I think the medium has a lot of potential and challenges.

artists' statement

I am inspired by many things around me, people, nature, and ideas. I see images as “visual metaphors”. I attempt to create these images hoping to capture the moment, mood or feeling. I enjoy creating with tinted resin due to its unique properties. It is these properties which also add to the challenge. Resin is a result of a quick chemical reaction; therefore the amount of each component is crucial, otherwise the resin will not cure or dry. It is also quick, often allowing me less than 20-30 minutes before I am unable to manipulate it like paint. I must plan out in advance and then work very quickly. Resin has a sense of depth to it depending on the color and layer combinations. All these attributes combined attracts me to using resin. They allow me to play with all or just on of the resin attributes, each piece being very different from the one before. When all the conditions are right, I am able to create very unique and interesting pieces. If just one condition is off, the result is a pile of colored, sticky mess. I use resin in two main ways. The first way I use resin similar to how I may use acrylic paint. I “paint” layer over layer to get a play of the colors, texture, and light reflection. The dry time between layers can be as much as 24 hours if I want no interaction of the colored layers. Many of pieces have 6-8 layers so I may take several days for just one piece. The second manner in which I utilize tinted resin is by pouring all the colors of the images onto the board at once, shape them and then allow them to interact chemically yielding a soft mixing and marbleizing effect often presenting an organic feeling of the image. The pouring and mixing process can only take 30-40 minutes so a lot of planning and preparation goes into each piece before I begin working with the resin. The combination of colors and textures, as well as the image itself, help tell the story. My goal is to encourage others to view the world differently using resin to great images, either abstract or recognizable.

artists' work

direct sale pieces
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Country Road price: $1,100.00 dimensions: 20 Working with resin is very challenging due to the limited working time and it's tendency to flow. I was inspired by a black and white photograph that ... more detail about Country Road >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Humid price: $900.00 dimensions: 12 Humid is a series of layers of different colors of tinted resin, starting with black, to achieve the final look and feel. Each layer requires a minim ... more detail about Humid >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Breeze price: $900.00 dimensions: 12 Breeze is a series of layers of different colors of tinted resin, starting with white, to achieve the final look and feel. Each layer requires a mini ... more detail about Breeze >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Sunrise price: $900.00 dimensions: 12 Sunrise, and its companion piece Sunset, were inspired by a vibrant painting that I wanted to imitate. Resin, however, flows and blends very easily a ... more detail about Sunrise >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Sunset price: $900.00 dimensions: 12 Sunset, and its companion piece Sunrise, were inspired by a vibrant painting that I wanted to imitate. Resin, however, flows and blends very easily a ... more detail about Sunset >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Deadly Silence price: $4,000.00 dimensions: 12 The first in a series of self portraits, the painting represents the damage of feeling verbally and emotionally stifled. ... more detail about Deadly Silence >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Storm Rising price: $1,200.00 dimensions: 20"w x 16"h x 1"d By leveraging the different thickness of the colored resin while they dry, the resin mixes but does not blend when curing. This resulted in the detai ... more detail about Storm Rising >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Insecurity price: $1,000.00 dimensions: 16"w x 20"h x 1"d This piece is several layers of resin to achieve a recognizable image of a hand holding a heart. This is what I imagine the feeling of insecurity may ... more detail about Insecurity >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Desert Night price: $2,500.00 dimensions: 48"w x 12"d x 1"d This image was created in two parts, first the sky and then the earth. Both were the result of blending the color resin on the wood and allowing only ... more detail about Desert Night >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Flowers price: $800.00 dimensions: 20"w x 24"h x 1"d By leveraging the different thickness of the colored resin while they dry, the resin mixes but does not blend when curing. This resulted in the detai ... more detail about Flowers >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: North price: $600.00 dimensions: 24 By leveraging the different thickness of the colored resin while they dry, the resin mixes but does not blend when curing. This resulted in the detai ... more detail about North >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Streaming price: $1,200.00 dimensions: 24"w x 8"h x 1"d By leveraging the different thickness of the colored resin while they dry, the resin mixes but does not blend when curing. This resulted in the detai ... more detail about Streaming >
[+] view larger Forward to a Friend	title: Wind price: $1,000.00 dimensions: 48"w x 12"d x 1"d This image was the result of blending the color resin on the wood before curing. The image reminded me of sand and dust blowing in the wind on a sunn ... more detail about Wind >