‘Rock strata, strange cloud formations, moody sunsets, reflections in rivers and lakes have me rushing for sketch book or camera.’ Mike Bell
Inspired by 30 years living and working on the Northumberland coast and now in the wilds of Redesdale, near the Scottish Borders, Mike Bell is fascinated by patterns of sand on beach, piles of seaweed and driftwood, order and chaos together. He was educated at Sunderland University, receiving a BA Hons in Art and Design degree in 1966 and has staged many solo and group exhibitions since. He is currently based in West Woodburn, Northumberland
Sand, soil coal dust, driftwood are often embedded in Mike Bell’s paint surfaces. He rarely uses a brush, preferring to use knives, fingers, trowels, sand, and spray paints, plus lots of builders’ materials to create impasto surfaces. Since moving to Redesdale, he has been inspired by the interaction of man and nature, in the Otterburn military ranges, military roads, bunkers and old tanks, for example, and enjoys the contrasts between crags, quarries, moorland and forests, which create a wonderful tapestry at different times of year. Influences Bell cites include Turner, Andy Goldsworthy, Cezanne and many more.
Chancery Gallery, Ontario, Canada, hosted a solo exhibition of Mike's work in 2008, as did Calder Gallery in Yorkshire in 2005 and Michael Joseph’s Artists’ Haven Gallery, Florida, amongst many others and he has taken part in a vast range of group exhibitions, such as his 2007 exhibition at The Rhonda Schaller Studio, New York. Recent awards include a first prize in mixed media in Avisen-avks's International Art Contest in 2007 and the Palm Art Award, 2006 from ArtDomain Gallery, Leipzig, Germany. His work is particularly popular in America and Italy and also in Canada and Australia.
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