ABOUT Michael English Fine Art

Like anyone who feels the urge to create, I make art because I feel compelled to do so. I love it, enjoy it, and sometimes endure it.

Reflecting my fascination with duality, I combine traditional oil painting on canvas with a modern surround of gloss paint to create vibrant studies of the human form, specifically the lines and contours that shape the face and body.

Through fragmentation of image, the surround of high-gloss defines the figure’s form while influencing the tonal and colour palettes of the oil painted subject. This duality between coexisting elements is taken to various extremes where form is apparent but identity is not always clear. I liken this to the high contrast ‘chiaroscuro’ approach of such masters as Caravaggio through to classic Film Noir cinema.

I have studied fine art at Wimbledon School of Art (Foundation) and University of East London (BA Hons) and live and work in London, England.

PROCESS

I design and plan each painting prior to custom building my own stretchers to the requisite size. The canvas is then stretched and primed before being marked out for painting. The gloss is applied first, and then masked when painting oils. Paintings of a standard size are completed within 2 – 4 weeks.

My paintings are often popular with people who want to see a favourite idol, partner, or family member pictured in an original, modern, and vibrant way. They often reveal more about the subject, such as what makes the ‘glamour’ in a glamorous image.

Others see a visually striking picture that they find interesting or see an affinity with. Plus commissioned paintings can also have further input in their creation by having the background colour scheme specifically chosen to visually compliment the intended display space.