Don Parker
Associate Professor, Artist, and Designer
With a career spanning over 35 years in graphic design, advertising, and fine arts, Don Parker brings a unique perspective to the world of contemporary art. His background includes collaborations with global brands such as 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures, creating immersive visuals that bridge art, technology, and storytelling. Currently an Associate Professor of Design Thinking and Innovation at the University of Bristol, Don's academic focus on creativity and pedagogy informs his artistic practice, offering a layered approach to visual narratives that captivate and intrigue.
Don's artwork delves into alternative narratives inspired by iconic stories, blending elements of mystery and symbolism with personal identity themes. His series, such as those inspired by Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Northanger Abbey, and Frankenstein, invite viewers to embark on a journey through layered imagery, puzzles, and allusions to landscapes steeped in history and myth. Each piece encourages a deep, immersive experience, sparking personal reflection on themes of identity, fate, and the human experience.
Rooted in a fascination with complex storytelling, Don’s work creates interactive spaces that engage viewers in both physical and digital realms. Whether through mixed media paintings, tarot card series, or digital campaigns, Don's art challenges boundaries, allowing collectors to experience his work as a continuous, unfolding narrative. His artistic journey is a fusion of his extensive experience in commercial design, academic expertise, and a lifelong passion for creating visually and conceptually stimulating works.
Artists Statement
My work blends storytelling and interactive narrative design to create dialogues between the visual and conceptual. Drawing inspiration from iconic stories like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, A Clockwork Orange, and The Shining, my paintings reinterpret these cultural touchstones, exploring themes of identity, memory, and transformation. Each piece invites viewers to find new meanings within familiar yet abstract imagery, blurring the boundaries between past and present, reality and imagination.
Current Projects
Los Angeles, 2019
In my Los Angeles 2019 series, I introduce the concept of "Shinka Anima"—characters who experience fragmented memories of a forgotten past. Within this narrative, paintings of the Brecon Beacons function as a "story within a story," collected by the characters as visual echoes of lost histories. These landscapes, embedded with subtle geolocation markers, invite viewers to explore moments suspended in time, blending memory and mythology.
Tarot Series
Extending the storytelling of my paintings, the tarot series uses symbolic archetypes to create immersive experiences through games and alternative reality games (ARGs). Each card connects traditional tarot symbolism with the characters and themes of the Blade Runner-inspired series, offering a new perspective on personal destiny, social roles, and transformation themes.
Future Series: The Mabinogion
Building on the themes of the Brecon Beacons, I am developing a new series that pivots into The Mabinogion, exploring Welsh mythology. This upcoming body of work will stand alone, blending natural landscapes with folklore and legend to capture a timeless sense of place and narrative.
Invitation to Viewers
Through my practice, I invite viewers to explore their own connections to the stories, locations, and emotions that inspire my work. With each piece, my goal is to take them on a journey that extends beyond the canvas, from iconic stories into entirely new, immersive narratives.
