Darren Siwes (born 1968) is an Australian artist of

Indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology) In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often populari ...

and

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

descent. He was born in

Adelaide, South Australia Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. Siwes completed a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Hons), (1996) and a Graduate Diploma of Education (1997) at the

University of South Australia The University of South Australia is a public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1991, it is the successor of the former South Australian Institute of Technology. Its main campuses along North Terrace are ...

. Siwes has a unique style of photographing familiar South Australian landmarks, and using long exposure to reveal the ghostly figure of an Aboriginal man in a suit and tie onto the image. More recently he has used female figures in this same style. Siwes' work is political in this sense. He says he is inspired by

contemporary Indigenous Australian art Contemporary Indigenous Australian art is the modern art work produced by Indigenous Australians, that is, Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islander people. It is generally regarded as beginning in 1971 with a painting movement that star ...

ists such as

Tracey Moffatt Tracey Moffatt (born 12 November 1960) is an Indigenous Australian artist who primarily uses photography and video. In 2017, she represented Australia at the 57th Venice Biennale with her solo exhibition, "My Horizon". Her works are held in t ...

and Gordon Bennett, and is interested in exploring the possibilities of Aboriginal art in new forms and new media. Siwes is represented by Greenaway Art Gallery in Adelaide and Nellie Castan Gallery in Melbourne.Darren Siwes on Artabase
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Awards

* 2002, Anne & Gordon Samstag International Visual Arts Scholarship

Individual exhibitions

* 2001, ''Misperceptions'', Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide, Nellie Caston Gallery,

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

* 1997, ''Fall'', Institute of Modern Art,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

* 1997, ''Horizon Scenes'',

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

, Irvine Gallery,

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

* 1996, ''Castles in the Air,'' Metro Galleries, Brisbane * 1996, ''Natural Alibis'', Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane

Selected group exhibitions

* 2001,

ARCO Arco may refer to: Places * Arco, Trentino, a town in Trentino, Italy * Arco, Idaho, in the United States * Arco, Minnesota, a city in the United States * ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California, home of the Sacramento Kings Companies * ARCO (b ...

(Arte Contemporáneo) World Art Fair,

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

* 2000, ''Across'', Canberra School of Art Gallery,

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

* 2000, ''State of My Country: a survey of Contemporary Aboriginal Art'', Hogarth Gallery,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

* 2000, ''Chemistry'',

Art Gallery of South Australia The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), established as the National Gallery of South Australia in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of ...

, Adelaide * 2000, ''Beyond the Pale'': Adelaide Biennial of Contemporary Art, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide * 1999, ''Living Here & Now: Art & Politics'', Australian Perspecta Exhibition, Art Gallery of New South Wales * 1998, 15th National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards,

Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) is the main museum in the Northern Territory. The headquarters of the museum is located in the inner Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin suburb of The Gardens, Northern Territory, The ...

, Darwin, and touring * 1998, ''Three Views of Kaurna Territory Now'', Artspace,

Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first capital city multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the early 1970s and designed by Hassell (architecture firm), Hassell Architects. The Festival The ...

, Adelaide * 1996, ''Guddhabungan'', Jabal Centre,

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

, Canberra

Collections

* Artbank

References

Australian Aboriginal artists Australian people of Dutch descent Living people 1968 births {{Australia-photographer-stub