Dan Makayda

Dan Makayda (D.K., dan.makayda) is a self-taught painter working primarily in oil on linen canvas and dry pastel on black paper, shaped by both instinct and recent mentorship. His techniques merge Impressionism and Expressionism, with gestural, confident brushwork, bold impasto textures, and intense, often warm color palettes, favoring visible strokes over seamless blending. His portraits render the human face as an expressive landscape, evoking vulnerability, resilience, and a visceral emotional energy that aims to be felt before understood.