Everything is Connected to Everything Else is Connected to Everything.

— Mike Biskup

Mike Biskup (b. 1970, Los Angeles, CA) is based out of Port Townsend, Wash. Primarily a contemporary watercolor painter of imaginary landscapes and abstractions, Mike also has a lifelong love of drawing evident in many of his painted pieces. When he works, Biskup turns on some music, sits down with a blank sheet of paper, and moves quickly, leaving his thinking mind out of his process as much as possible. The improvisational and stream-of-consciousness approach employed by Biskup for his visual artwork has clear parallels with the spontaneous nature of the music that inspires him. Take some time to absorb the occasionally surprising and always unique shapes, colors, and composition of Biskup’s works and see what they evoke in you!

See more of Biskup’s work at: www.mikebiskup.com

“In my paintings, everything flows together. Colors, lines and shapes—people, places and things are woven into one harmonious, functional system. I want to subtly remind viewers that we humans, in all our diversity, are essentially interconnected, and with thoughtfulness, can function together harmoniously as well.” — Mike Biskup

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For decades, Mike Biskup’s work was defined by his deft linework [see The Tooter Plesimus from his high school days]. In college he was inspired by a watercolor class which gave him tools to quickly wash color into his pencil and ink drawings.

In 2014, something happened that completely changed his process:

“I went to my studio one evening after an intense argument with my wife. I decided to put on an audiobook by spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle, thinking maybe he could help calm me. Within minutes, I felt my anger slipping away as I began to remember the perfection of the present moment. While I listened, I used my brush to paint simple shapes on a piece of paper. It sounds obvious now, but it never occurred to me to paint without drawing lines first. Here were these different colored shapes emerging, talking to each other, even overlapping. I was completely ecstatic [see Sublimation, 2014].”

His work hasn’t been the same since. It continues to evolve—blending, overlapping and creating a feeling of connectedness along the way.