Creating art that speaks to your soul.
About AtelierDarrynLee
THE DESIRES TO LIVE A FULL LIFE
What is the best life one can live?
Should it be lived in service to others, or is it really all about me? Do I carry a responsibility to other people, to animals, to plants, to future generations—and even to the humble bumblebees that pollinate my garden?
This question has followed me all my life. Why should we get out of bed in the morning?
I don’t pretend to have the answer. What life has taught me, though, is that it’s fragile and never to be taken for granted. At 18, I was told I was going blind. At 21, I lost my brother Martyn in a car accident. By 32, I was a millionaire with four apartments in one of Dublin’s most prestigious neighborhoods. By 33, I was bankrupt and homeless, living out of my car.
My solution? Work. Work, work, and more work. I had to start again from the very bottom of Maslow’s pyramid. But this time, I promised myself it would be different. No more stressful city life. I wanted to return to nature—to buy a farm, plant an orchard, grow a vegetable garden, and paint. It sounded simple. In reality, it took me 13 years.
I wouldn’t have made it without Maggie, my little lady who believed in me when I couldn’t believe in myself. When she met me in Stavanger, Norway, I was a 34-year-old failure. To this day, I don’t know why she chose to stand by me.
The lessons I’ve learned along the way are simple but profound: things take time, and it matters deeply who you surround yourself with. Find people who inspire you, and hold them close.
If you ever need motivation, I’ll show you a photo of our home—what it once was, and what it has become. Today, I get to share that with Maggie, with our children Timian and Ella, and with Speedy, our cat.
And that, to me, feels like the best life I could live.
Our Story
In the summer of 2023, I met Celia, Ava, and Jason in Dedham, England, while attending a two-week figure drawing and painting workshop with Robert Liberace. The experience was incredible—studying in an old dance hall set in Constable country felt like stepping into history.
I ended up sharing a house with Jason, whose gentle, Bob Ross–like voice was as calming as it was encouraging. Meanwhile, Celia and Ava impressed me daily—their skill was astonishing, far beyond what their youth might suggest. I couldn’t help but wonder: had Rob passed them some kind of secret formula? And if so, how could I get some of it for myself?
At the time, I was laying the foundations for my new north-facing atelier. A year later, in 2024, I reached out to Celia and asked if she would teach a workshop there. After a long pause, she said yes! I was thrilled—except for one small problem: the atelier didn’t yet have walls or a roof.
By the summer of 2025, just as the freshly painted walls were drying, Celia and Ava arrived—Jason too, with his trademark ear-to-ear smile. We had two models, both coincidentally named Peter. Celia proved to be a wonderful teacher—calm, thoughtful, and precise. Ava offered sharp, practical insights, like guiding me on how to capture the terminator line of a nostril. They were natural-born teachers, just like their father.
To be honest, the workshop wasn’t confined to the studio. Each evening, we ventured outdoors for landscape drawing and painting sessions, making the experience as much about the beauty of nature as it was about the figure.
And did I manage to capture a little of that Liberace magic? Yes—just a bit. But it left me wanting more. Which is why I’ve invited them back for another workshop in 2026.
I hope you’ll join us too.
