I consider myself a storyteller. I think to make art, is to tell stories, regardless of what you end up with. Whether they be religious illustration, institutional critique, or highlighting some sort of undervalued or unexpected thing that artists tend to do, artists are telling stories. So yes, narratives are imagined.
Michael Cline
Michael Cline’s practice meditates on objects that are close at hand. Executed in a restrained color palette dominated by soft blues and greens, Cline’s paintings depict the plants, collected curios, memorabilia, pottery, and furniture in his immediate orbit. The artist is interested in exploring “an interior world using exterior signifiers,” like the houseplants he nurtures, waters, and protects, or the inanimate ecosystem of his studio. Eschewing details that might root his works in a specific time or place, Cline instead opts to focus on the formal and material details present in his subjects, such as dust, textural oddities, and lighting. His perspectives are often manipulated or peculiar, resembling the often high-angle, haphazard compositions of vernacular photography.
Michael Cline lives and works in New York; completed his MFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and his BA at the University of North Florida. Cline has presented solo exhibitions with Corbett vs. Dempsey, Chicago; David Kordansky, Los Angeles; Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York; and Daniel Reich Gallery, New York. His works have also been included in group exhibitions organized by the Parrish Art Museum, New York; Museo d'Arte Contemporanea Roma, Rome; Deste Foundation, Athens; David Zwirner, New York; Lehmann Maupin, New York; and Saatchi Gallery, London. Cline’s paintings are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; François Pinault Foundation, Venice; and the Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmania.
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, US Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN, US François Pinault Foundation, Venice, IT Saatchi Collection, London, UK Museum of Old and New Art, Tasmania, AU Deste Foundation, Athens, GR Norman Museum of Contemporary Art, KS, US Progressive Art Collection, Cleveland, OH, US