Biography

David McKinney (born 1970, Ballymena, Northern Ireland) is a contemporary photographic artist based in Ballymena. Working primarily in digital photography, McKinney is best known for his photographic exhibitions that seek to raise awareness of mental health issues. His work occupies the intersection between aesthetic expression and emotional enquiry, employing visual experimentation to communicate psychological and ecological states of being.

McKinney’s practice explores the relationship between mental health, nature, and personal recovery, translating emotional experience into abstracted and metaphorical representations of the natural world. His work is characterised by a reflective, poetic approach that merges conceptual depth with visual accessibility. Through an evolving engagement with therapeutic and eco-photographic methodologies, McKinney’s images invite viewers to consider the interconnections between inner and outer landscapes. His current and ongoing body of work, being developed as part of his Master of Fine Art in Photography, continues to refine this synthesis of emotional resonance and conceptual form.

David McKinney has exhibited actively as an emerging artist, including at Belfast Exposed’s Gallery 2, John Luke Gallery (Belfast), Sunburst Gallery (Newtownards), Arcade Studios Gallery (Belfast), the Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre (Bushmills), and ONCA Gallery (Brighton, England). He has also participated in Belfast Exposed’s International Healing Through Photography: Trauma & the Art of Recovery Conference (2025) and the Northern Ireland Group for Art as Therapy’s 2025 Summer School, contributing to ongoing dialogues on the role of contemporary photography in emotional healing and public wellbeing.. He has also been awarded grants by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the SANE Creative Awards Scheme.

Artist Statement

My practice explores the interplay between mental health and ecological consciousness through the lens of therapeutic photography in nature. Drawing on eco-philosophy, I create visual narratives that reflect emotional landscapes through embedded engagement with the more-than-human world. Using experimental and intuitive photographic techniques, I develop abstracted and metaphorical representations of nature, weaving together my inner experience with ecological observations. Through this approach I aim to challenge anthropocentric narratives and reframe mental well-being within a wider, interconnected ecological context.