Mike O'Guinn

O’Guinn is a neo-expressionist artist who blends the emotive force of the 50’s and 60’s Expressionist movement with a distinct contemporary urban touch. O’Guinn’s work is characterized by spontaneous decisions that reflect emotions and musical influences he channels into each piece. O’Guinn draws heavily from the music that moves him, allowing genres ranging from punk and grunge to underground hip-hop to permeate his canvases. O’Guinn considers big emotions as he works and often incorporates juxtapositions like fluidity/bold or chaos/structure into his paintings. Merging seemingly opposing visual elements to create something with balance is an underlying theme to much of O’Guinn’s work. O’Guinn recognizes that art itself (particularly abstract art) does not cure the world’s problems, but it’s O’Guinn’s belief that glimpses of vulnerability or raw moments put onto a canvas are symbolic of being able to really see each others’ experience and connect with something on a human level. That’s where the meaning comes in.