Originally from Michigan, Donald W. Van Auken has created a world based upon a
circus in his head, a grouping of characters that manifest themselves in dreams
and continuously appear in thoughts and drawings. These characters are an exultation of whimsy, parody, and beauty. As a child he
began to construct a world of cardboard, pencils, action figures, clay and
scotch tape. Today, this world is composed of characters that possess a
theatrical quality, based on the narrative tradition developed in cartoons and
comic books. Van Auken's work references a stage-like setting where iconography
and cartoon imagery substitute for props and actors. However, the stage is
intangible and the dialogue is presented to the viewer in a constant state of
flux. As an art educator Donald W. Van Auken has taught for two years in public
schools, served as the Director of Education at a small Mid western art museum
in Battle Creek, Michigan, and as an Assistant Professor in Art at Ohio
University where he received his M.F.A. in Painting.
