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Life through the eyes of......

During the mid '70s,  Harry's sense of frustration over the difficulties encountered in getting established with mainstream art galleries began to fester.  People would ask him why he didn't display in galleries more often, and he would answer that finding a reputable gallery that could represent the many facets and styles of work that he created had proven to be a formidable hurdle.  Printing, advertising and distributing his own work seemed to be the answer,   so Harry apprenticed himself to a printer in Gainesville and together they created several printing establishments that would serve as a school for learning a whole new art form---print. 

During 1976,  Harry conceived, painted and produced a series of full color prints depicting animals in reverse roles with man,  titled "Manimals" (in print and available from this web site).   At age 22 he once again found himself in trouble with the law.  He was arrested,  handcuffed and jailed during the annual Cedar Key Florida Art Festival,  in front of thousands of shocked viewers,  for displaying a classic painting from the Manimals collection,  "Behind the Barn".  The composition shows a cow milking a surprised farmer,  though it displays no genitalia.  The furor and publicity which arose from this incident led to a two page full color spread in the November '78 issue of National Lampoon magazine. 
 

At age 24,  Harry was busy exploring facets of ultra realism and began to forge a style uniquely his own. From this point his painting would breathe with a clarity and eloquence only a master could achieve.  At about the same time,   in the search for his own style,  computer-generated art was just beginning to creep onto the scene.  Anyone with proper computer equipment could easily copy, adjust or otherwise manipulate a photographically real image,  thus rendering ultra realistic painting obsolete.  However,  good hand rendering still retains a unique quality and useful function.   Many years of sketching began to pay off when clients could witness the rapid development of an idea,  or visual solution to a problem.   This valuable talent proved to be quite lucrative in an age of desktop publishing.   Computer driven vinyl cutters and ink jet printing have since gotten faster,  sharper and more affordable every year, thus competing with traditional techniques of hand lettering, blending and airbrushing.   Fortunately,  Harry was kept busy creating original signage for the many businesses he encountered in his travels.   Harry never lost sight of his dream of creating original art,  even while earning a living designing commercial projects.   During the early '80s he did numerous murals and interior design concepts for restaurants and night clubs, which allowed him to keep exploring new creative avenues.
 
 

above: '59 Caddy top right > with Walter "Wolfman" Washington in New Orleans bottom right >  at New York Art Expo

After a brief marriage.   Harry relocated to carve a niche in the New Orleans art scene.  While in The Big Easy,  he provided art services for Brennan's,   Bayona,  Commander's Palace,  and other fine restaurants.  The flavor of city life there inspired Harry to paint numerous studies of the laid-back Louisiana lifestyle.    The  economic recession of 1991 and Operation Desert Storm didn't help an already flagging economy,  and Harry moved again,  locating in Orlando Florida.   While in Orlando,  he created an oil painting titled "Beached",  which became the first of the Flights of Fantasy series of limited edition prints (in print and available from this web site).  After entering a national aviation art contest at Boston's Logan Airport,  he won third place with "Beached".   The positive response to this painting became impetus to develop and create a series of improbable aircraft in unique scenarios.  Two years later,  he unvieled the large scale release of Flights of Fantasy prints at the Jacob Javitz Convention Center at the New York Art Expo '94.  Thousands of art buyers attended the show looking for something new.  The editors of U.S. ART magazine found what they were looking for when they featured an in-depth spread on the artist in the October 1994 issue.

Entering the mid 1990s,  the advent of the internet and the World Wide Web helped otherwise unheralded artists reach huge audiences around the world,  more than any one gallery could ever achieve.  Art lovers can now visit artists and their galleries,  and can purchase art directly without ever having to leave the comfort of their home.

Harry's diverse background helped him land a creative position as Graphics Supervisor for Museum Services Inc, producing large scale  commercial projects for corporations and museums.  In the theming industry,  Harry found a virtual creative sandbox in which to hone new skills and disciplines in a myriad of diverse projects.  One day he would be painting the backdrop for a diorama in a museum in Illinois,  and the next day be applying a paint finish to a sculpture in a Las Vegas casino.  Museum Services evolved into Scenic Productions, Inc,  and Harry continued as part of what was now a large team of fine artists and craftsmen.  Their work is seen daily in major attractions nationwide,  including Disney World,  Busch Gardens,  Universal Studios, Field Museum, and Paradise Island, Bahamas

During 2001,  Harry launched two new endeavors.  His web site, harrydmichael.com, and H.D. Michael Art & Theming.  The new company  offers the theming industry an excellent source for highly specialized art and graphics products and services. and still.......he paints......