Attic Gallery, On-line Store

Michael S. Ferguson - Biography

Click here to view works by this artist: >>> Original Works Giclees

Michael S. Ferguson, a Northwest native, was born in Seattle, Washington in 1958. In 1979 he graduated from the Burnley School of Professional Art in Seattle and went directly to work for Battell Labs in Richland, Washington. While working at Battell and later at the Boeing Aircraft Company as a graphic artist, Michael's creative skills were used in a variety of ways. In 1988, a desire for painting prevailed and he left the commercial world to pursue a career as a full-time artist.

Galleries as far as Naples, Florida have represented his work and collectors are scattered world wide. Michael's paintings, collages and linocuts are represented by galleries in Washington and Oregon as well as various National group exhibitions.

Michael's paintings reflect his love for the wilderness, whether it is a glacier-fed alpine lake or a stark desert vista at sunset. He likes to paint small paintings on site and then develop them into larger works back in his studio. "I can't paint without going out," he said. Michael has been painting and drawing since childhood mostly in oils and acrylics although in the last few years he has developed a series of small linoleum prints using the same subject matter and images found in his larger paintings.

Over the years, beginning in l984, he has won many awards of excellence from places such as the International Art Comp . Inc., L. A., CA; Pacific Gallery Artists, Tacoma, WA; National Landscape Show, Artists Mag.; {First Prize) Puget Sound Annual Exhib., Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA; (John R. Grabach Award) American Artists Professional League, Salmagundi Club, New York, NY; (Best of Show) Colorado Springs Art Guild, CO; (Grand Prize) Wichita Center for the Arts, Wichita, KS and has had numerous exhibits in museums including Missoula Museum of the Arts, Missoula, MT; Clymer Museum, Ellensberg, WA; and the Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA to name a few of his exhibits through out the U. S. Michael's style may vary from detailed and precise to very impressionistic.

"Mountains, ocean and desert abound. As a Northwest native, it's not surprising that I gain so much inspiration from this surrounding.

For centuries artists have painted the world around them. I've been following this tradition as well. Using various mediums both in the home studio and the field, I bring to life thoughtful and vibrant interpretations of the landscape. My painting approach is fundamentally representational. The realty of the scene is readily apparent, followed by a fracturiing of shape and color upon closer inspection. Oils are used for field painting. Outdoor painting often encourages a more impressionistic and suggestive quality due to the changing weather/light conditions. This is the direct link to the land; so I often use these small oil paintings as triggers for larger, more expansive acrylic studio paintings. The controlled studio environment allows for a richer and more personal view.

Other media are also utilized. Linocuts that I produce with my own small press offer a graphic perspective. Collages are a recent form to challenge me and yet another way for me to interpret the land. These however, go beyond representational views. Collage has led me to a world of pure abstration.

An artist should paint his life. My life is more than the landscape. Traveling in the wilderness often has, and will continue to fuel my work. Now though, more than ever I'm seeing my everyday life as needing a voice in my work. Family life is showing up in the painting. Lively figurative images with a story......."