About the Artist
Biography
Dave's watercolours have earned him numerous awards and accolades, including selections as a finalist in many major art prizes in his native Australia including the John Glover Prize (twice, in 2024 and 2026), the Heysen Award for Landscape (twice, in 2022 and 2024), the Waverly Art Prize, the Sorrento Art Prize, and many others. He won the 2024 Casino Watercolour Prize and the OSARTEXPO People's Choice in 2023. Before embarking on his painting career, however, he was a professional surf photographer and journalist.
Dave was born in 1962 and grew up in Bondi Beach, moving to Blueys Beach, on the NSW mid-north coast, in 1998. He was a full time professional surf photographer/journalist from 1996 until 2016, and has completed assignments worldwide for magazines such as Tracks, Waves, The Surfer’s Path, The Surfer’s Journal, Surfing World and ASL, and companies such as Rip Curl clothing, Billabong clothing, Quiksilver, Carve Eyewear, and many other clients. He has also written and photographed travel features for Outdoor magazine and The Sydney Morning Herald travel section.
Dave has photographed numerous covers for magazines published in France, England, US, Australia, New Zealand, Spain and Brazil, including the highly prestigious cover of the 2005 US Surfer Magazine Photo Annual.
He has traveled to many countries for commercial and editorial shoots including Hawaii, Tahiti, Indonesia, Chile, India, Philippines, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Tonga, Fiji, China, Cook Islands, Maldives, Japan, Mozambique and South Africa. He has worked extensively with the best surfers in the world and many of the all time greats, including Dane Reynolds, Sunny Garcia, Mick Fanning, Tom Curren, Mark Occhilupo, Gary Elkerton, Jamie O’Brien, Pancho Sullivan and Dave Rastovich.
In early 2005, for Tracks Magazine, Dave covered the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami that devastated much of South-East Asia, a life changing experience. Dave was a staff photographer/writer for the iconic Tracks magazine for over twenty years. He has twice placed amongst the top ten finalists of the Australian Professional Surf Photo Awards. He is well known for his innovative mastery of the “over/under” or split shot genre, and is considered by his peers to be the leading photographer in this field.
Dave has had images published in several books such as The Moment, Pilgrimage, The World Stormrider Guide, Outra Ondas, A Wave Away and Archipelago.
His first solo book, The Wave: Tales From The Impact Zone, a stunning collection of images, character sketches and travel stories, was published in Australia and New Zealand by Hachette Publishing in 2011, to rave reviews.
In his book review for the Sydney Morning Herald, noted journalist David Knox wrote of The Wave: Tales From the Impact Zone:
“Proof of Sparkes’ artistry with a camera appears on every page, but the book is made all the more satisfying by the author’s deftness with words. He writes cleverly and lovingly of his craft… A rewarding, enlightening and often humorous read…”
Dave relocated to Byron Bay in 2014 with his wife, Tracey, and dog Frankie. For the past 15 years he has focused more and more of his energies on landscape painting, particularly his luminous watercolour seascapes. His artwork has been featured in Tracks magazine, Swellnet, White Horses magazine and Tropic Surf, a high end travel company.
Dave has taught watercolour workshops for Northern Rivers Community Gallery, (NRCG) as well as conducting his own popular watercolour workshops. He is represented by the Coldstream Gallery, Ulmarra, NSW, Australia.
ART PRIZES
John Glover Prize - Finalist, 2024, 2026
Wollongong Art Prize – Finalist, 2025
Sorrento Art Prize – Finalist, 2025
Waverly Art Prize – Finalist, 2024
Wollumbin Art Award – Finalist, 2024.
Heysen Prize for Landscape – Finalist, 2022, 2024
Doyles Art Prize – Finalist, 2024
Casino Watercolour Prize – Winner, 2024, 3rd Place, 2025.
Our Clarence Art Prize – Runner up, 2020, 2021, 2023.
Elaine Bermingham Watercolour Prize – Finalist, 2023.
Ocean Shores Art Expo – Winner, People’s Choice award, 2023
Ocean Shores Art Expo - Winner, Best Watercolour, 2022.
BAM Art Prize – Finalist , 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023.
Blue Thumb Art Prize – Finalist, 2022
EXHIBITIONS
Coldstream Gallery, Ulmarra – “Transparent”, solo show, May 2024.
Northern Rivers Community Gallery, Ballina – “Separate Realities”, solo show, March 2023.
Lone Goat Gallery, Byron Bay – “Distillation”, solo show, March 2022.
The Coldstream Gallery, Ulmarra – “Watercolours”, solo show, March 2020.
M-Arts Precinct, Murwillumbah – “The Illuminated Landscape”, solo show, November 2019
Tweed Regional Gallery, Murwillumbah – “Incandescence”, solo show, March 2019.
JEFA Gallery, Bangalow – “First Anniversary”, Group Show, December 2018.
Grafton Regional Gallery - “Luminosity”, solo show, September 2018.
Northern Rivers Community Gallery, Ballina - “The Colour of Light”, solo show, October 2018.
The Bucket List, Bondi Beach - “Submerged”, Group Show, November 2018.
The Lone Goat Gallery, Byron Bay - “Illumination”, debut solo show, February 2017.
COLLECTIONS
Ballina Shire Council Permanent Collection
Casino Art Gallery Permanent Collection
Chris Hemsworth Family Collection
