"My father immigrated from Scotland, so I'm a first generation American. I have been a painter and sculptor all my life, beginning in abstract work, and arriving here, wherever 'here' is now. Life is good!"
Mike Smith finds inspiration for his subjects and colors in the gardens and rural settings of his home and studio in the Pacific Northwest. He began sculpting and drawing as a child. After a stint in the Army where he was stationed in Germany, Mike returned to the States and attended the University of Portland and received a degree in English Literature. He taught briefly before he deciding to commit his time towards developing his art on a professional level.
His early work was abstract, but Mike soon abandoned this genre to create his own unique, colorful style that has subsequently influenced other artists. The artist’s work contains worldwide themes and ideas, but the focus of his painting and sculpture remains the hill where he lives. While pets wander through many of his watercolors, loosely based on the artist's life and gardens, several of his equally successful works depict more exotic fauna. Giraffes, an elephant, a lion, draw on Mike's profound artistic experience and spiritual delight in the forms of nature. Infusing his work with his fine sense of celebration, Smith creates works of great charm and visual excitement.
In his 30-year career, Mike has participated in almost 100 solo exhibitions of his work across the United States and Europe which includes watercolor, oil, acrylic, bronze, ceramic, and printmaking. His artwork can be found in public and private collections around the world.
