From Big Things
Darren McDonald
- Sitter: Stephen Tiernan
- Medium: Oil on Linen
- Dimensions: 137cm x 152cm
- Representation: This artist represents themselves
About the artwork and sitter
This is a portrait of Queensland Police Officer and boxer Stephen Tiernan.
Stephen, a well-known artist in his own right, won the Performing Arts and Music category at the 2022 Brisbane Portrait Prize for a painting of his step-son. This is where he also met Darren, who invited him to sit for this portrait.
Stephen is a celebrated officer, and has been serving in the Police Service for 33 years.
The title of this piece was inspired by the song, ‘From Little things, Big things grow.’
‘The song resonates with me and somehow relates to the work Stephen does as a Police Officer and a loving father.’
About the artist
Melbourne based artist and 2022 winner of the Brisbane Portrait Prize, Darren McDonald has been painting for over 25 years.
His work is represented in the National Portrait Gallery, the National Gallery of Australia and Monash University. He has been a finalist in many prizes.
He’s always been interested in the imagery of humans and animals, often drawn to one feature in particular– their eyes.
