Dani McKenzie

Australian Women Artists The podcast Ep 77 Dani McKenzie  Dani McKenzie’s story begins, unusually, not in an art school studio but in a bedroom — where, after a formative trip through Europe and a chance encounter with the work of Belgian painter Michaël Borremans, she spent six months teaching herself to paint. That instinct and passion carried her into the National Art School in Sydney, where she completed both her undergraduate and Master of Fine Art degrees, and where her enduring fascination with photography — memory, privacy, and the lives of strangers — first took shape.Early in her career, Dani worked from found photographs, creating imaginative worlds conjured from those images. But it was the ubiquitous disruptions of 2020 that changed everything. Forced to slow down, she began walking her own neighbourhood in inner-Melbourne, photographing it at night, and turning her lens — quite literally — on her own life and surroundings. The results are a stunning body of work. Paintings of glowing windows, quiet streets, and private moments caught in public space, executed with a photographic precision that somehow still feels deeply human.Dani is represented by PIERMARQ Gallery, Sydney, MARS Gallery, Melbourne and Long Story Short Gallery (Los Angeles, Paris, New York) and has held solo exhibitions in Paris, Los Angeles, Sydney and Melbourne.Dani mentions being influenced by Clarice Beckett. You could copy and paste this link into your browser to hear a conversation I had with Jennifer Higgie on Clarice:https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/australian-women-artists/id1794012822?i=1000695950466Head to the link in my bio to have a listen to our conversation. Alternatively, search Australian Women Artists wherever you find your podcasts.  Images1.   DM image supplied by artist2.   Waiting For You, 2022, oil & acrylic on linen 3.   Waiting for Gelato, 2021, oil on masonite 4.   That Little Italian Place on the Corner, 2022, oil & acrylic on linen 5.   Room With a View, 2023 oil & acrylic on linen 6.   Closing Time I, 2023, oil & acrylic on board 7.   Date Night, 2024, oil & acrylic on linen 8.   The Final Hour, 2025, oil & acrylic on linen