Alvin DARCY

Alvin Darcy is a Yorta Yorta, Taungurung man through his father and a Ngarigo, Walbunja man through his mother.

 Alvin lives and works in Dja Dja Wurrung Country in Castlemaine, central Victoria. He learnt many different crafts through his family and Elders and has a long practice in drawing having always been encouraged to draw. His father was a knowledge holder in the making of artefacts, design, and poker work to express and share understandings of culture. Alvin continues this practice and is currently using pyrography - ‘writing with fire’. Alvin’s works capture the fragility, spirit, and power of the land, and draw from his culture and knowledge to highlight native fauna extinction.

He studied graphic design and has since worked in building and construction, landscaping, screen printing, logo design, and bronze sculpture. In 2019 he was awarded People’s Choice Award – Koorie Heritage Trust Art Prize and his works are held in public galleries and private collections in Victoria and South Australia. In 2020, he collaborated with Punctum as an artist and cultural contributor for their new participatory work investigating river systems and cultural flow.

 In his recent 2021 solo exhibition at Castlemaine Art Museum, he combined many of the techniques he’d acquired and practiced over the years. Alvin’s most recent works celebrate rare native animals and birds of Djaara Country. In collaboration with an agricultural scientist, he is currently illustrator and advisor on cultural practices for a forthcoming publication.