It is enervating to exist as a multi-racial man in the American south. In 1978, Antonio Darden's West Indian mother entered the United States by way of New York. She relinquished her Caribbean/South Indian heritage and adopted a pseudonym. Darden's mother met his African-American father at a funeral, fell in love and relocated to North Carolina. His mother adopted a drawl, learned to cook soul food and in 1990 persuaded her family to relocate farther south to Georgia.

In 2006 Darden earned his BFA in Sculpture from Georgia State University. In 2009, he and fellow artist Matt Sigmon founded the artist collaborative, The Art Officials. His work as been exhibited in shows in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Mexico. Most recently Darden was awarded a Juror's Choice award at MOCA GA in a group show surveying the Georgia artists. In the summer of 2022 he was named the Southern Prize State Fellow for Georgia by South Arts. He subsequently opened two consecutive solo shows in Atlanta in the summer and fall of 2022. He currently lives and works in Atlanta, Georgia.