Artist Statement: I find explaining my reasons for creating art rather difficult, due in part to the involuntary pull I feel when brush, pen, or pencil is in hand. I am unsure the level of cliche that suggests, but the puppet can only move when the strings are pulled. Where this takes me is unknown; the journey interesting and the postcards colorful. Despite my attempts to find a new path on this artistic journey, the roads are lined by the footsteps of giants. Each step I take fills me with inspiration, whether it be the writings of neuroscientist Oliver Sachs, or the flamboyant visions of Dali, that I attempt to communicate with the outside world. The unseen inspires me to open my eyes and feed upon creation. As I stumble along, my perception of thoughts finds itself spewed onto canvas and paper. The line drawings represent my vision of thoughts in a physical form before they manifest into words. The oil paintings tend to focus on subconscious concepts, and the moments where reality is either falling away, or forming the reality on which we stand. The most important aspect of my art resides in the the process of creating. These acts help me discover those lost moments of life, and to reexamine those that have to form my view of reality. When a person smiles after viewing my work, I realize that no matter my trials and tribulations, I have made a difference worth keeping. This is the greatest gift that I can receive.
Artist Bio: As a child of adoption growing up in a small Ohio town, Michael S. McCullough found respite in artistic endeavors at a young age. Whether it was music, sketching, or painting, Michael felt the hole created by not knowing his biological parents finally being filled. However, with the loss of both adoptive parents, he became obsessed with the subconscious and conscious minds. Oils, inks, watercolors, and colored pencils round out this self-taught artist’s mediums of choice in discovering these intangible themes. Inspired by philosophy and history, science and religion, art and music, Michael continues to press his limits in the hope of finding a voice lost so long ago.
FREE
2016/01/08 - 2016/02/20
Nine Muses Art Gallery
584 West Tuscarawas Ave, Barberton, OH 44203
Large parking lot off of Wooster Rd behind building, some on street parking is available.