David Rose was born in Melbourne and in 1959 graduated with a B.Sc. (Forestry) after studies in Melbourne and Canberra.

In 1960 he took up painting and printmaking full time in Sydney. In the mid-60s he travelled in Europe and studied etching at Barcelona’s Escuela Longa, producing a series of lithographs. From 1967-76 he taught printmaking first at the National Art School, and then at the School of Art, Alexander Mackie CAE, Sydney.

From 1977-1986 he resumed painting and printmaking full time.

In 1986 he resumed teaching and printmaking part-time at the City Art Institute, Sydney.

He has participated in over 40 solo exhibitions and group exhibition since 1961. His work has been show in Portland, India, The USA, London, Japan, Denmark, Toronto and Hungary. He has participated in 32 International Biennales and his work is held in most State and Regional Galleries; the Australian National Gallery, Canberra; Museum of Contemporary Graphic Art, Norway; Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA.

When you look at David’s work over the years, there does not appear to be any sudden transition in style.

David’s work has a broad range, from figurative work, still life to landscape, but no matter what the subject there is no escaping his passion for the graphic line, and his creative use of space. His drawing is the basis for everything, and it has been said that his real gift is in composition and line. Towards the end of his career after a move to a bush property at Ourimbah on Sydney’s Central Coast, he became preoccupied with the Australian landscape.

David said, “When I was an adolescent I was terribly concerned with the human figure. And then I definitely went through an abstract phase in the late 60s and 70s with half-tone dots. I was concerned with ideas, pictorial and graphic ideas. There was Spanish and eastern culture mixed with zen calligraphic simplicity. Simplicity is the big word.

“I have become more literal. It has been hard to avoid. I want to emphasize the major graphic element, but you can’t do everything in one picture – it’s not possible – it would be like a huge symphony. As a painter you cannot do everything, but I have a strong movement, like a solo guitar… a teasing thought.”

Taken from Terri Dodd’s article ‘Free Agent’ on David Rose in the May 1994 issue of ‘Australian Artist’