Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael W. Hall.
Michael W., please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I grew up in Baltimore and became an artist in Philadelphia. I helped to found the Lost Film Festival in 1999. Around the same time, I developed a nearly obsessive interest in riding freight trains. I was one half of an experimental touring art and music project called Ospreys until 2007, at which point I turned my attention almost exclusively to painting. My wife and I moved to Texas in 2012.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
My work is all painted by hand without the use of tape or masking. I feel that the small imperfections and wobbles that result from painting freehand add humanity and character the work, allowing the viewer to see my hand in paintings that at first appear to be hard edged and technical.
I have backgrounds in both screen printing and sneaking rides on freight trains, both hobbies developed in my early twenties. Around 2007 I began experimenting with gouache paintings and very quickly found a new voice for myself. The flat color aesthetic of gouache felt right at home with my printing experience, and I started painting twisting networks of lines that echoed the railroads that occupied so much of my time.
I moved to Texas in 2012 and at the same time, I started massively scaling up some of my work and painting murals. Since then, I have completed commissions for Austin City Limits Festival, Facebook, Nordstrom’s, and most recently for the City of Smithville funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as many local businesses.
How do you think about success, as an artist, and what do quality do you feel is most helpful?
I find success to be a tricky subject, in that my desire to improve is one of my major motivations to want to keep working. I use the impulse to make something better to propel myself into the studio day after day. It seems that success could be a double-edged sword, because if I were to ever feel like I had completely succeeded in my artistic goals, I don’t know that I would still feel driven to paint. That said, every month that I can pay my mortgage and keep the lights on while painting does feel like a small victory!
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
I have an exhibit opening with Adam Young and Aaron Michalovic at Webb Gallery in Waxahachie, TX on Feb 24. I also currently sell work in Austin at Ghost Pepper Glass and Camiba Art Gallery. I’ve completed several murals around Austin and two in Smithville, and I’m hopeful that I’ll paint my first in Houston in 2019!
Contact Info:
- Website: mmmwhhh.com
- Email: mmmwhhh@gmail.com
- Instagram: mmmwhhh
Image Credit:
Heather Sundquist Hall
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