“My paintings border on the edge of abstraction and representation. It is a journey of visual discovery where color is the soul of the painting.

“I use the landscape as the starting point but my objective is to create a compelling image that is a condensed version of reality. Each painting evolves from a combination of observation, photo reference, memory and invention. The color studies my also lead to a series of the same subject.

To me, the process of painting is a balancing act between control and response, sophistication and simplicity. My key influences are the great colorists: Mark Rothko, Richard Diebenkorn, Sean Scully, Wolf Kahn and Georgia O’Keeffe.”

Mike graduated from the Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis. He worked at four leading Chicago brand identity firms as a designer, creative director and partner before pursuing a second career in fine art. He now paints full time from his studio in Winona Lake, IN.