 |
lake, and while they fished, I drew. It kept me out of a lot of trouble," he jokes. Later, he entered the Academy of Art College in San Francisco. Encouraging him in his pursuit, his grandfather promised to pay half the college loans upon his graduation. "It showed me he believed in me." At the Academy Michael experimented with all types of media and artistic styles. "Covered in paint...I was always painting." After graduation, Michael toured Europe, peaking his interest in European culture. It was this experience that led him to pursue his desire to capture the nuances of social interaction, city nightlife and cityscapes in his artwork. "I am the guy in a cafe," he says, "noticing a beautiful, warm, orange-violet light chipping on people's faces across the room, and immediately thinking of ways to combine color and capture that moment in my next painting." | His style has been described as a cornucopia of avant-garde, abstract expressionism, and impressionism. "I love the colors of Cezanne, and try to take some of them for my own paintings, adding a contemporary twist." "I want to show that a painting doesn't have to be challenging. It can just be something that pleases your eye. It doesn't have to have a meaning. You don't have to dissect it. Enjoy its beauty and what it brings to you." Michael captures moments in time that bring back memories to the viewer through his paintings and limited edition prints. *Taken from an article by Sarah Seamark To view articles about Flohr's work, click the following links: |
||
"All I do is paint every day. It is an obsession, I can't stop," says Michael Flohr, a San Diego artist whose modern impressionist paintings of bar and cafe scenes and rain swept city streets offer a social commentary on our times. "I can tell different feelings and attitudes you get from people - from their faces and conversations - and I blend their figures and gestures." Nightlife in cafes mirrors the social status quo, he observes. "You get a lot of views on what is going on in the world, hearing what people are saying. A man earning a million dollars sits next to someone who can barely afford the beer they are drinking - so many different worlds come together in a bar or cafe." His father David, and his mother Sandy encouraged him in the arts. In fact, he says his mother is his best critic. Nurtured in a happy, fun, home, Michael grew up in the small dusty town of Lakeside in San Diego County, a place he describes as "nice and safe." Fishing trips on the nearby lakes with his father were a highlight of his youth. And everywhere Michael went, he took a notebook and drew. |
