Born in 1957 in the United States, Mike always enjoyed drawing and painting as a child, but instead pursued a career in the engineering and design fields. After establishing and growing his own company over many years, he decided to sell everything and follow his passion for art. He studied with Italian artist Francesca La Rue in Hawaii for several years, and also with Hungarian artist Emö Simonyi in Italy.

After 6 years living on the island of Maui in Hawaii, in 2005 Mike and Timothy moved to France to deepen their artistic development. Today they split their time between their home in Quillan, France and their winter house in Algeciras, Spain. Mike paints full-time and teaches a limited number of art classes each year. They have a gallery located in their home, and have exhibited throughout Europe.

Mike challenges both himself and others, and in the process finds both physical and spiritual healing through honest and full creative exploration. His goal is to enrich the world around him through color and the expression of life, capturing its essence and taking himself and his students on a journey of discovery through the life of an artist. Finding himself, losing himself, asking why, and answering “Why not!”

Mike's art is continually evolving and he has been influenced by a variety of countries, cultures and artists throughout his travels. His work can be at times both political and inspirational in style, full of expression and sometimes controversial.

"The purpose of my life is to be different, to be unique, to create something from nothing, to lead and make my own direction, and not follow the paths of others. Creativity is the ability to step back from collective fantasies and delusions, to breathe and do what you want to do the way you want to do it, to think on your own and not follow news, trends, or your neighbors, to not do something just because everyone else is doing it."

Art is a feeling, an expression and a journey.
Art is my guiding light.