Darian Robbins

 

ARTIST STATEMENT

My piece is a tribute to Nas' song It Ain' t Hard to Tell from the classic album "Illmatic".Hard-hitting lyrics and jazz infused boom bap beats cemented Nas as one of the greatest emcees to touch the mic. As he used his words to create lush visuals and ill metaphors, I use my paintbrush and other multi-media techniques to create an artistic piece that allows you to see, hear and feel the rich textures of Nas' lyricism.

 

 

BIO

While growing up in Fredrick, Maryland, Darian Robbins expressed his creative talent early on in life.

As a child he entered local art contests, and was one of eleven students selected as one of eleven students

to draw historic landmarks of Fredrick City for a childrenís guidebook. Whenever the opportunity presented itself,

Robbins rarely failed to express his God-given talent. As a student at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, despite not being an art major, he continued to develop his artistic gifts, frequently being commissioned by campus organizations and local business to design t-shirts, fliers and logos.

After graduating in 1999 with a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Robbins, along with other fellow artists, formed graphic/web design company Omega Dawn Grafix, Inc. In 2001, Robbins began self-publishing, exhibiting his works at events such as the October Gallery Show (Philadelphia, PA), the National Black Fine Arts Festival (Atlanta, GA)

and the Black Heritage Art Show (Baltimore, MD). In 2005, the African-American Visual Arts Association (AAVAA), the organization responsible for the Black Heritage Art Show presented him with the Emerging Artist Award.

More recently, Robbins received a commission by best-selling author Orson Card to illustrate images

inspired by Cardís science-fiction classic, Enderís Game. Today, Darian Robbins continues to experiment

with a variety of media from paint to digital graphics. In all of his work, he aspires to create pieces

that display the progress of his ability and purpose to address concepts that evoke oneís perception as

well as introspection.