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Michael Harris is an oil painter, song-writer and world traveller
from Toronto. Michael is self
taught, having never sought out formal training in art.
"Even as a child, I always preferred to be
self-directed, progressing through exploration, experiment and
self-discovery - rather than being instructed. It is a sentiment
that has remained with me to this day.
Needless to say, the appeal of art college was more or less lost
on me."
Following high school, Michael made an attempt at compromise by
studying graphic design at George Brown College in Toronto. Not
surprisingly, he soon became disenchanted with this choice. The
immediacy of travel as a form of self-education better suited his
temperament; not to mention his desire for knowledge of life and
the world.
Seven months of immersing himself in the galleries and culture of
Europe at 19 was followed by a
year long stay in Australia at 21. At 24, to mark his transition
to the ranks of professional
artist, Michael took his paints and palette on his year long "trip
around the world" - painting
his way through Hong Kong, Thailand, Australia, Nepal, India,
Greece, Turkey and the UK.
Michael has spent years developing and evolving his approach to
painting in oils. His work tends to
fall into two general streams - enigmatic, provocative figure
paintings of his Crucified
Mountie and Tower Of People series; and his haunting and
atmospheric landscape paintings
which have been consistently sought after by top designers and art
enthusiasts in Toronto for
several years now.
"The nature of painting is unique in that it captures the moment to moment flicker and flow of
inspiration itself. Each brush stroke, each colour selection is a
single moment held in
place. Painting therefore has this mysterious ability
to transcend the boundaries between people over vast stretches of
time.
In an era when so much of human experience and interaction is mediated
by impersonal electronic technologies, the hands on
physicality of a great painting can be really refreshing and
impressive. It's the "I can't believe someone made this-ness"
of it. Perhaps as the 21st century progresses there will be a
renewed interest and demand for magnificent works of art."
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