Steve Russell meets Darren Mundy, one of the North East's most celebrated artists, thanks largely to the colourful magic of his 'Hilltown' collection.
For most people, leaving a steady career to live the precarious life of an artist would probably represent a significant risk. However, thanks to his meticulous nature and entrepreneurial spirit, that was never quite the case for Whitley Bay’s Darren Mundy. A talented artist since childhood, his skills would eventually lead him into a successful career in graphic design, but there was always a budding businessman in the background. Darren elaborates:
‘I was always drawing as a kid, but I have also been selling my work for as long as I can remember. I recall drawing cartoon characters like Batfink and selling them to classmates for 50p!’
Superheroes with ‘wings like a shield of steel’ aside (I was also a Batfink fan), Darren’s commercial appeal would develop alongside his talent, especially when he turned his hand to producing tributes to his musical heroes:
‘I actually bought my first car with the proceeds of a portrait I did of Queen’s Roger Taylor, which I sold through a magazine. I was a big fan, and I also drew lots of portraits of Freddie and Brian, but never got round to doing one of John Deacon for some reason!’
It was around this time that he graduated with an HND in Graphic Design from Newcastle College, and he would go on to work for many design firms, as well as a stint running his own agency. Highlights of his time as a designer included working on projects for Disney and the iconic rebranding of Go North East’s bus fleet in the early 2000s. He continued to produce art as a sideline, and he even did a commission for Newcastle United, with his ‘Heroes of the Number 9 shirt’ pencil portraits, which became bestsellers in the club shops and even made their way to the private boxes.
Towards the end of his design career, the idea of creating his own recognisable brand of artwork had been germinating for some time, and it was something he researched and refined scrupulously before he was ready to commit to becoming a fulltime artist:
‘I knew that the most successful artists usually have a signature style and I thought about this a lot before I developed Hilltown. I was never amazing at painting people, so I wanted to focus on something which would allow me to tell a story in a more simplistic way. I also wanted to create a premium product, so I looked at many other factors, such as how other people framed and presented their work.’
His thorough approach has certainly paid off and he has established a large fan base in the UK and beyond. The Hilltown collection features a rich colour palette and a subtle humour, where the title of the work and the characteristics of the houses within the image combine to tell a story. Darren explains the process:
‘The idea is to tell a story without people. A good example is a piece like ‘Party at Brian’s House’. On the surface it is a moonlit picture of 4 houses, but only one of the houses has lights on, which along with the title, creates the narrative.’
Darren is a proud native of the North East, and his work often features local landmarks, such as the Angel of the North, the Tyne Bridge and St. Mary’s Lighthouse. That may be one of the reasons why he was the best-selling artist of 2020 for his permanent gallery and most ardent supporter, The North East Art Collective, in Eldon Garden.
However, if you can’t find what you’re looking for in his impressive back catalogue, you can request a commission, which represents one of his most popular business streams. He also does the occasional landscape piece and has recently completed a portrait of his native Whitley Bay.
Away from the easel, you will find Darren on his bike, spending time with his wife and two children, or frequenting Whitley Bay’s many restaurants and micro-pubs. The general joys of the pandemic have reduced his usually prolific output, but he is very much looking forward to getting back to what he does best, and our region will be all the richer for it.