Artistic Spark

Moving to France has certainly opened doors for mechanic-turned-metal artist Darren Ind, who, together with his wife Kate and their two children, is enjoying a new flexible lifestyle in Vienne, says Gillian Harvey.

- Gillian Harvey

The beauty of France has been a source of inspiration to artists throughout the ages; whether the sun-drenched fields and vineyards captured by Van Gogh, or the bustling Parisian idyll painted by Renoir, France has a lot to offer in terms of inspiration. However, for mechanic Darren Ind, 34, who moved here with wife Kate, 30, and their children Noah (six) and Abi (three) in 2015, discovering Darren’s artistic side came as a surprise to all the family.

Having settled in the hamlet of Le Vigeant in Vienne with the intention of running his car repair business, Darren now teams his more ordinary car repairs with a blossoming metal-art enterprise.

“I wouldn’t have classed myself as artistic in the past,” he admits. “I can’t draw at all!” Nevertheless, when he found an old weathervane in one of the outbuildings that came with their property, shortly after moving to France, Darren thought he’d use his welding skills to repair it. “The weathervane was badly broken, so instead, I made one,” he says. “When Kate posted a picture of the finished piece on Facebook, lots of people expressed an interest and I found myself making a few more for friends.”

Inspired by the popularity of his work and the natural flair he seemed to have for melting metal into beautiful shapes, Darren began to experiment, drawing inspiration from his surroundings and the space and time afforded by his new existence. “I used the extra time I had out here to play around with making things out of metal,” he explains. “After making weathervanes, I realised that lots of the pieces I’d cut out resembled birds’ feathers. I studied some pictures of owls and thought I’d try making one.”

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