Bio
Growing up in the rural area lost between the PA line and the Baltimore suburbs, Michael spent lots of time playing, building and creating. Over several decades, one fascination after another has led him through deep dives into fine arts, historical research, woodworking, travel, electronics, mechanical engineering, and metal fabrication. This background has allowed him to draw on diverse inspirations, forming a unique artistic vision that can merge together materials and concepts. His projects involve complex interrelated systems that combine to create seamless and whimsical designs.
Seeing how skills from wildly different disciplines can be fitted together, he has focused on a core mission of collaboration throughout his career. In 2011, and again in 2016, the Kinetic Couch brought together friends to create a three person pedal powered living room that competed twice in Baltimore’s Kinetic Sculpture Race. In 2017, Michael shifted into a full time arts practice, sought a diverse group of collaborators, and Formstone Castle Collective was born. Formstone Castle seeks to combine unique skills from all participants to create complex pieces combining sculpture, lights, music, costume and performance.
Each of Michael’s new works builds on experiences gained along the way. For the first Formstone Castle project, building on the frame of the Kinetic Couch, a piece was created for Baltimore’s Light City that combined the mobile living room with the over-the-top look of Japanese Dekotora trucks. A well timed trip to Burning Man between projects then gave Michael the confidence to grow his art in scale and complexity. The next piece, What Lies Beneath, would involve two km of LED strips underwater, playing the animations and music of 4 artistic collaborators, created for Light City 2018. Baltimore Fancy, created for Light City 2019, involved collaboration with the Baltimore Arabber Preservation Society along with other artists. This installation included real horses pulling a lit up fruit cart, and an LED lit barn yard. The project repurposed LED technology from What Lies Beneath and combined it with centuries-old barn wood and low-tech crankie animation, along with a high tech soundtrack. Other 2019 projects included a large metal and acrylic gate for Arlington INSPIRE garden, a collaboration on a giant Viewmaster for Artscape, and a 6 story, 60,000 LED tower of light at Burning Man.
A common theme running through all of Michael’s artwork involves collaboration across communities and the use of unexpected materials. This creates a unique built aesthetic, often combining handcrafting with cutting edge technology.