3rd Prize Winner
Catherine K. Gyllerstrom Emerging Artist Award

Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize 2025

David Derflinger

Title:

“Future Prospects”

Medium & Dimensions:

Acrylic and gouache on Fabriano paper mounted on wood panel, 40 x 60 cm.

About the Artist

David Derflinger is an engineer and artist based in Graz, Austria. Active since 2018, his work is rooted in realism with a tendency towards melancholic themes and surreal elements. Although predominantly traditional, some of his paintings incorporate a mixed media approach utilizing digital tools. Kept mostly monochromatic, the images often depict a subject-centered composition with an emphasis on emotions and body language. The paintings are done by layering hundreds of translucent acrylic washes atop each other to build contrast. David has grown very fond of this time intensive process and values it for its meditative qualities. 

“Future Prospects”: The artwork deals with how a pessimistic outlook on the future can shape the way one is seen by others. How the darkness obscures the vision and lies heavy in the stomach, like stones, or skulls if you will. While painting a very bleak picture, it should hopefully be seen as only one side of a medallion, that shines very bright on the opposite side.