Today’s Artist Interview Is With Michael Orwick

Whopple: How long have you been an artist?
Michael: I have been drawing and creating all my life. When I started college I strongly disliked painting and was horrible at it.

Whopple: Tell us about your first attempts to be creative.
Michael: As a youngster I was dyslexic and had a hard time in school. I remember often just drawing between the lines, along the margins, and on the back of barely filled in tests. Instead of getting in trouble, I was wisely shuffled into “special ed classes but also they let me start going to the older kid’s art classes, which was scary but a great boost to my confidence. So thanks to my 3rd and 4th grade teachers for being tuned in and involved, and as funny as it sounds, thanks to my funny backwards brain, for wanting to create new things as opposed to recite old stuff.

Whopple: Do you make a living with your art?
Michael: Yes. All the things I do are art related. I do mostly gallery shows which I love. I’m lucky to have great very supportive galleries that really believe in my art.

Whopple: How many hours a day do you create?
Michael: I paint as much as I can, while still trying my best to deal with the business, book keeping and promotional parts of things. I have found through trial and error what works best for me and my family. And that is an 8 -5 regular business hours. I treat it very much like a regular job, a job that I’m very lucky to have and a job that if I start slacking I will lose. My only other long term job I have had is a waiter, which was fine but I do not want to go back to it. I also teach on Mondays and starting this year I’ll begin to offer workshops (one even in Canada).

Whopple: How did you pick your creative medium?
Michael: Painting backwards or dark to light was a major revelation when I finally realized how to build up the oil paint it made so much since to my “backward brain”. I can remember the moment painting a still life in class, working on a shadow form, then adding the light on top of that and it looking correct. It was like a slap across the face waking me and showing me the light. Like a really wonderful slap upside the head.

I also give credit to Will Vinton Studios who gave me an internship animating, which, until then, was what I fully thought was my calling in life.

It was all so exciting getting to work on a show called the P.J.s with Eddy Murphy doing much of the voice work. But quickly I began to dread it, it was very repetitive and impersonal, I was just a minor cog in the machine and it hurt my tender young ego. So when the summer was over I never considered animation as a viable job option again. So thank you to Will Vinton Studios for a very valuable life lesson, and inadvertent push in the right direction.

Whopple: What are your inspirations?
Michael: I live in one of the most amazingly beautiful places I know of, so I’m surrounded by inspiration constantly. I love light and atmosphere most. I’m always so intrigued by how normal seemingly mundane things can appear extraordinary when lit just so.

I also love art, I love to look at art talk about art and buy art.

I think I was born with natural Prozac coursing through my veins because to me life is beautiful and I have given myself permission to go out and look for and look at beautiful things and share them through my paintings.

Whopple: How do you recharge when your creativity hits the wall?
Michael: Grab the camera and go hiking.

Whopple: What was your first job?
Michael: Working in the hot hot farm fields moving irrigation pipes…and that is all I want to say about that.

Whopple: What are your favorite snacks when you are creating?
Michael: Gum and coffee. I chew a crazy amount of mint gum, and drink too much black coffee.

Whopple: What gives you hope in the world?
Michael: My daughter is a smiley, pony tailed daily miracle.

Whopple: What do you wish you could do?
Michael: Travel more and paint from plein air more.

Whopple: What are your artistic goals?
Michael: To get paid to travel to paint and to teach.

Whopple: What has been your most exciting moment as an artist?
Michael: Last November (Stormy Weather Arts Festival in Cannon Beach, Oregon) I had a showing at the Dragon Fire Gallery that nearly sold out in one day (18 paintings). It was like a fantastic tornado of fans and friends new and old, and a day long party. I love hearing about what others think and feel about my paintings. I’m getting better about sitting back and letting people share with me. Often they share things I have not even thought about with my own paintings, and from time to time hearing people say exactly what was going through my head as I was working is so rewarding.

See more of Michael Orwick’s Art Here:

http://www.michaelorwick.com

This is my primary site and t
he best for keeping up with my paintings.

http://michaelorwick.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/michaelorwick

Dragon fire gallery
www.dragonfirestudio.com/
5034361533
123 S. Hemlock Street, Ecola Square, ,
Cannon Beach or 97110

Cole Gallery
www.colegallery.net
(425) 697-2787
107 5th Ave S
Edmonds WA 98020

The Freed Gallery
www.freedgallery.com
541-994-5600
6119 SW Hwy 101
Lincoln City OR 97367

Newberg Gallery
503-538-0888
503-538-0888
115 N. College St
Newberg Or

Valley Arts
www.valleyart.org/
503-357-3703
2022 Main Street
Forest Grove Oregon 97116

Anne Amie Vineyards
www.anneamie.com
(503) 864-2991
6580 NE Mineral Springs Rd
Carlton Or 97111

These Interviews With Artists Are Copyrighted To Whopple.com