Daniel Dover – Q&A (2025):
In animation, the idea of movement and timing plays a key role. How do you ensure that the energy and fluidity of your painted or illustrated characters translate into dynamic animation?
DD:
I tend to imagine my characters and subjects living and moving around in their own world to begin with, so translating that energy and their attributes into animation feels quite seamless for the most part. I like to start my illustrations with strong and expressive poses – and if the character already feels alive in a still image, adding movement will come very naturally.
How do you decide when a project should be static (like a painting or illustration) versus dynamic (like animation)? What drives that choice?
DD:
It depends on the story I want to tell. If I feel like a moment needs to be captured in a single image that speaks volumes, I will go for a painting or an illustration. If it’s a longer story with more to explore, like character development, animation is likely to be the better choice.
Do you always have a hidden message within your art?
DD:
I hope so, though occasionally it’s also hidden from me at the time, which is why I really appreciate it when people point them out.
Are there any techniques or skills you have learned from one medium that you have been able to apply to others?
DD:
Drawing skills from illustration come in very handy in both painting and animation. And studying how movement works in animation helps a lot with character design and posing for illustrations. They all kind of feed into each other.
In your view, what is the value of experimenting with different mediums? Do you think it’s essential for an artist to keep evolving, or is mastery in one medium just as important?
DD:
For me it’s more about opening new ways of thinking and approaches. I don’t necessarily see it as a need to constantly evolve, but more to expand on ideas or different moods.
Do you think the emotional or narrative impact of your work changes depending on whether it’s viewed in a gallery setting versus online? How does the environment affect the way your audience engages with it?
DD:
It affects the way people engage with any work. In a gallery, there’s more focus on the physical presence of the piece, while online feels faster and more casual. The narrative or emotional impact can still come through if the work resonates, but the setting can change the way it’s experienced.
What kind of reactions do you see from people when they experience art in a public space versus a gallery?
DD:
People in public spaces tend to engage with art more casually, they might stop for a moment to enjoy it, take a photo, or just ignore it and keep walking. There’s a different kind of focus in the gallery, where you have more time and own space to spend with the piece. They both bring out unique reactions, but the environment really shapes how the audience connects with the work.
Was there a particular idea or image that sparked this series, or did it come together more gradually?
DD:
The idea developed slowly over time, as I found some characters from my animation and illustration projects, both fictional and non-fictional – kept standing out to me, and felt they needed more exploration in a different medium like painting, where I could give them more depth and let them evolve in a different way. It was not one single idea, but more of a gradual shift toward these characters needing something more.
What drew you to work on documentary projects in the past, and what are you looking forward to in future ones?
DD:
The initial appeal is naturally the stories themselves, and I’m very interested in how animation can bring a different layer to non-fiction storytelling. It’s always a new challenge, and I enjoy exploring these real-life narratives with a certain personal take.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
VISUAL ARTIST DANIEL DOVER
LAUNCHES NEW CHAPTER
WITH EXHIBITIONS, MURALS, AND ANIMATION PROJECTS
June 27, 2025 – Hollywood, CA.—————————-Visual artist Daniel Doveris entering an exciting and expansive new phase in his creative career, with several major projects currently in motion – across fine art, large-scale murals, and animated storytelling.
Best known for an evocative body of work that merges fine art sensibilities with dynamic storytelling, Daniel Dover is preparing for a series of upcoming solo exhibitions in New York and beyond. These new exhibitions will showcase Dover’s continued exploration of form, connection, and everyday life, reflecting both a curiosity about human experience and his ever-evolving engagement with public space and visual narrative.
At the same time, Dover is launching a new cycle of mural work, with several large-scale projects slated to appear across New York City in the coming months. Building on the momentum of earlier public artworks, including prominent murals across Tel Aviv and a celebrated animated installation at Tel Aviv City Hall. These new pieces will bring Daniel’s bold visual language into direct dialogue with the city’s communities and streetscape.
Building on recent animation work, Dover is also continuing to develop visual content and direction for several documentary projects currently in production, contributing both animated sequences and conceptual design. These collaborations represent a natural extension of Dover’s illustrative storytelling, layering his distinct aesthetic into nonfiction formats.
Throughout his career, Daniel Dover has built a broad and diverse presence across public spaces and galleries in Israel, Europe, and New York. His work has drawn wide recognition for its rich interplay of personal symbolism and intrinsic narrative storytelling, often weaving together remarkable experiences, underlying tensions and emotional nuance. In addition to gallery exhibitions, Dover’s site-specific installations have garnered critical attention, including a celebrated series of plastic animal sculpture sprawling across recycling collection sites in Israel. A valued commission at the Center for Jewish History in New York City, and the animated installation at the entrance of Tel-Aviv City Hall, which continues to resonate as a public landmark.
This next part of Daniel Dover’s career builds on these achievements with a renewed sense of scale, ambition, and cross-medium fluency. His ability to move fluidly between the intimate space of animation and the monumental scale of muralism has become a defining trait, as has Dover’s instinct for narrative structures – whether told through a canvas, a wall, or the unfolding movement of animation.
As Dover moves into this next chapter, his work continues to evolve in scale, format, and tone – while staying grounded in a consistent visual language shaped over years of practice. With upcoming exhibitions, murals, and animated collaborations taking shape, this period marks both a continuation and a quiet shift for Dover. One that leans further into narrative, collaboration, and the interplay between public and personal, and continues to build on familiar themes.
“Outtakes” by Daniel Dover opens on July 11th.
The Greenpoint Gallery – 390 McGuinness Blvd. Brooklyn, NY 11222.
More information about forthcoming exhibitions, murals, and media collaborations will be released soon.
For press inquiries, interviews, or further information:
Jodi Jackson
JJ Entertainment
323-356-0797
