I have worked for over ten years as an artist and illustrator. I began my painting career working on my bedroom floor in Manchester. At that time only one gallery was selling my work, The Tom Caldwell Gallery in Belfast.
All the galleries in Manchester at that time were either very traditional or very modern and my work didn't seem to fit in to any of them. So I moved home to Belfast and joined Magpie Studios. My first real studio! I felt like a proper artist.
The other artists in the studios always seemed to know where and when exhibition openings were on and how much / what quality of wine would be available.
So I gained a bit of a social life as well as having a nice bohemian feeling environment to work in.
During this time I started selling more steadily and a couple more galleries started showing my work. Charles Gilmore Gallery in Holywood, where I had my first solo show, and The Taylor Gallery, which has since gone very "top end" selling the likes of Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst.

I moved into the Workshops Collective which was a much more business-like set-up.
I picked up a lot of commission work there, and sold at the regular exhibitions they had.
After several years I decided to go back to college and learn digital design. That's where I learned to make this website.
After that I worked as a graphic designer for a couple of years. But the company went bust unfortunately and I was left looking for work. I applied for a job sorting mail in a sorting office. It was supposed to last a couple of months, but somehow after two and a half years, I was still there. I was stuck on the night shift and hated it. So one night I just told them I was leaving and they just said "Okay."
So now I am just painting and loving it.
It is a difficult way to make a living though, so if you see anything on the site that you like, if you have something in particular you would like me to paint,or if you like the site itself and would like me to design you one, then click on the contact page and get in touch with me.
Cheers!

Michael.

ditRegion6