"Don Diego" Painting

I am a self-taught contemporary artist based in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Before dedicating myself to art, I competed at Dutch national level in Mixed Martial Arts and became a National Champion. After sustaining serious injuries, I shifted from physical combat to painting, channeling the same intensity, focus, and discipline into my work. My practice evolved from realistic painting into a dynamic, semi-abstract style driven by movement and emotion. People are central to my work. I aim to capture the recognizable character of each subject while adding layers of abstraction that reflect inner tension, energy, and identity. Through expressive brushwork, palette knife techniques, and bold use of color, my paintings explore resilience and human presence. Alongside painting, I create vibrant digital portraits in which faces are divided into color blocks, adding a contemporary and multi-dimensional interpretation of personality. More recently, I have been experimenting with painting portraits on caps, expanding my work beyond the traditional canvas and blurring the line between fine art, fashion, and street culture. Since 2019, a selection of my work has been represented by NYA Gallery. My art is held in the private collections of international sports icons such as Mike Tyson, Valentino Rossi and Rodtang. Football legend Ronaldinho has shared my work publicly, and I have completed commissioned pieces for Dutch national football players including Memphis Depay, Denzel Dumfries, Riechedly Bazoer, and Jairo Riedewald.