Michael Stillion creates paintings, drawings, and collages that draw from visual sources and memories which have impacted him emotionally and visually throughout his life. His current body of work explores a fascination inspired from his childhood: monsters. Elements of the artworks—expressions, themes, compositions—are often appropriated directly from centuries-old masterworks, an aspect which contributes to a haunting, classical mood expressed in many of the works. Simultaneously, there is a playfulness and humor achieved through witnessing the tragic plights of the forlorn creatures—a feeling of schadenfreude (taking pleasure in the misery of others); a perhaps acceptable fate for these ordinarily child-terrorizing creatures. An amalgamation of Stillion’s imagination and experiences, his monsters are a visual blend of both what fascinates and haunts him.

Michael Stillion received his BFA degree from the Columbus College of Art and Design and holds an MFA degree from Indiana University. In 2008 he was awarded a full-fellowship from the Joan Mitchell Foundation to attend the Vermont Studio Center. Stillion was also awarded an Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council in 2008.

This exhibition is presented in partnership with the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program and the Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art. For more information on these programs, please visit their websites at: www.rair.org and www.roswellamoca.org.

For additional information about this artist, you may visit Michael Stillion's blog by clicking here.