Can you tell us a little about your background? When did you start drawing and when did it develop into a visual arts practice as apposed to doodling in your spare time?

I’ve always loved sketching. As a kid, I often watched my dad create the most remarkable drawings. Seeing the way something so beautiful could be created blew my mind and made me pretty pumped to draw.

Studying architecture at university later instilled a strong encouragement to draw regularly; a sketchpad and thick lead pencil were essential. Those years created a rigour around drawing, always keeping an eye open and observing wherever you go.

The pencil, I think, is a tool in the process, a way of quickly documenting. Since starting to use pastels or paints, I have been encouraged to sit down and take more time to work up and complete an idea, which has developed into my current art practice.

You work in chalk pastels, this is quite a difficult medium to work with, why is this your medium of choice?

I once watched a documentary on one of my favourite illustrators, Shaun Tan. He used soft pastels in his process to establish his illustrations. There is a radiance and fragility to the aesthetic that I really enjoy. The chalk powder uses minimal binding/oils so the light reflectivity is incredibly low. This really encourages the pigments to be vibrant and alive. It’s delicate work; the amount of drawings that have succumbed to the smudge is sizeable!

I also think I gravitated to this medium because the translation from pencil to pastel, in terms of its application, was familiar to me. The immediacy of the pastel and its ability to quickly make marks on the page and build up thick layers of colour were very appealing, particularly when my art practice is outside of full time work. It allows me to pick up and go, even if only for 10 minutes.

Can you describe your artistic style and how it has evolved over time?

The last few years have seen the works evolve into slightly more refined pieces. I think this is through practice and beginning to understand the medium slightly more. I seem to spend more time on finishing lines and working up shadows and highlights than I did in the past. I try not to define the work by a style as such; I just follow what comes naturally, what feels right in its application, and keep chasing landscapes or scenes that inspire me without trying to overthink it.

Tell us about your sandstone skies. What does this landscape mean to you?

Moving to Thirroul seven years ago for work really kickstarted my desire to draw and paint regularly beyond the sketchpad. There is something about the towering escapement, so wild and mostly untamed, that enables a sense of awe and mystery. It is the weather shaper and the light master, capturing the morning rays and deep afternoon shadows. Its presence seems to soak into your bones; it has a become a familiar backdrop that shapes the life around it. I think these dramatic landscape have always captivated me. Growing up on the edge of the Wollemi NP, I have always been surrounded by sandstone skies, so it always feels like home when I’m amongst these landscapes.

Daniel Rivers in his home studio, The Corner Store Gallery, photograph by Madeline Young.

Do you work from life or photographs?

My process varies. At this point in practice, I rarely do pastels plein-air; it’s often a sketchbook that accompanies me. Quick marks of lead are what I’ve been taught and often provide me with a great way of capturing the scene. When it comes to developing a work, I rely on the sketches and photographs as they both provide valuable insight. The photo speaks to the composition, and the sketches are the direct connection to the memory and life of the moment.

What's your favourite part of the process?

I’d have to say the first moments of any work. It’s always within these marks that you know if it’s working. I enjoy the teetering edge that pastels put you on; there is a limit to their layers, so reworking is not really an option as it will crumble straight off the paper. There’s a level of spontaneity to this fragility which keeps the flow, you just have to go in confident and be ok if things don’t work as you can always move on to the next work.