A New Collection Exploring Love, Resilience and the Beauty of the Journey
Danielle O’Connor Akiyama returns with Steadfast, a striking new collection that sees the internationally collected artist move further into abstraction while retaining the unmistakable visual language that has made her work so recognisable.
Rich midnight blues provide the backdrop for luminous gold, flashes of white and vivid accents of red and blue. Waterfalls tumble through dreamlike landscapes, blossoms appear suspended against star-filled skies and familiar symbols emerge from layers of texture and expressive mark-making.
But, as with so much of Danielle’s work, there is far more here than first meets the eye.
Steadfast is a celebration of love that endures — love that remains strong through the trials of life and, in Danielle’s words, “still wears its golden crown with pride.”
Every Painting Begins With Poetry
Perhaps one of the most fascinating things about Danielle O’Connor Akiyama’s work is something you may never actually see.
Before she begins painting, Danielle writes a personal poem — which she calls a “drift” — directly onto the surface of the canvas.
As colour, texture and imagery are gradually built up, much of the writing becomes obscured. Yet the words remain beneath the surface, becoming a permanent, hidden part of the finished painting.
Danielle describes painting as “silent poetry”, and knowing that each work quite literally begins with words gives that description an entirely new meaning
Look Closely – The Symbols Tell Their Own Story
Danielle has developed her own visual language over decades of painting, with many of the elements appearing in her landscapes carrying their own particular meanings.
Blossoms represent hope and renewal.
Waterfalls symbolise refreshment and restoration.
Bridges suggest change and possibility.
Circles represent connection and wholeness.
Pathways represent our journey through life.
Spirit Guides represent love, support and protection.
Within Steadfast, even the smallest flashes of colour have significance. The blue markings represent protection, while the red markings signify continuance.
It means these paintings can be enjoyed simply for their beauty, but spend a little longer with them and another story begins to appear.
Created With Some Extraordinary Materials
Danielle’s paintings are renowned for their richness and texture, and her materials are anything but conventional.
Over the years she has experimented with beeswax, minerals, coal dust and even diamond dust, as well as grinding some of her own pigments and incorporating natural materials gathered during her travels.
Nature therefore isn’t simply the subject of Danielle’s work — it becomes part of the process of creating it.
This layering of unusual materials, pigment and expressive brushwork helps produce the wonderful depth and luminosity for which her paintings have become known.