Unusual in art: Michael Parkes and his magical realism

Michael Parkes - the brightest representative of magical realism in the art world. The most unusual in the works of Parkes is his ability to unite the metaphysical images and spiritual elements into reality. His work is shrouded in a mysterious atmosphere, which can be deciphered, resorting to Eastern philosophy and ancient mythology.

Fantasies of a talented artist

In the fantastic world of Parkes all earthly laws are abolished, and space and time are in their own immobile communication. It is very tempting to talk about the world of the artist's dream, because the freedom and audacity of his work, he surpasses all our dreams and expectations.

Michael Parkes himself says that we were taught only to perceive our own world, but this does not mean that we should not enter other universes.

Michael Parkes: biography of the master

The artist was born in 1944 in the city of Sikeston (Missouri, USA). He studied painting and drawing at the University of Kansas, and after that 4 years worked as a teacher of fine arts at Kent State University (Ohio), as well as in one of the universities of Florida. But still his main goal was to engage in art.

At the age of 26, he realized that he did not have sufficient technical skills. And at that moment, Michael Parkes took a decision that completely changed his life. He realized to become a real artist, he must see the world. In 1970, the master and his wife went on a long journey across Europe and Asia in search of a new spirituality. In the future, the philosophy and esoteric teachings of the East and West will greatly affect the artist's work. His images, borrowed from a number of wisdoms and embodied in the forms of his imagination, are understandable and accessible to the viewer.

In 1975, after the daughter's birth, the spouses returned to Europe and settled in Spain in a small village on the Mediterranean coast. There the master lives and to this day. And if initially Parkes worked in the style of abstract expressionism, which was distributed among his teachers, after a long journey he began to work in his own style, which fully allowed him to realize all the images that arise in his inner world.

Creativity of a talented artist

Michael Parkes, whose paintings can immerse the viewer in the meditative state of high awareness, has become the creator of a new trend in painting, which is called magical realism. In its bright world, even fictional monsters, which are necessary for creating harmony, are beautiful and dreamy. All the works of Parkes are permeated with tranquility and pacification.

The artist Michael Parkes pays a lot of time to create his masterpieces, focusing on small things. And this is not so often found in modern times, where representatives of the art world are ready to constantly create to meet their financial needs.

A separate place in the work of the master is a lithography stone, which Michael began to get involved in in the 80's. Due to the fact that the process is very risky and there is a high probability of ruining the work, modern masters are practically not doing this kind of creativity. But Parkes in this hard work finds pleasure, because the result is much greater than the effort spent.

Exhibitions and achievements of a talented artist

Michael Parkes had a large number of solo exhibitions in Switzerland, Chicago, Frankfurt. Also, his work was demonstrated in prestigious galleries in Paris, Amsterdam, New York, Los Angeles and other US cities.

In 2007, the realist Parkes became a respected guest and artist of the international exhibition "Venus and Women's Intuition", which was held in Holland and Denmark. In the same year the work of the talented artist became the basis of the modern ballet Scorpius Dance Theater. The art of the master revived in the choreographic productions and character characters. Michael has an irreproachable reputation and undeniable talent. He became not just the founder of a unique style, he managed to occupy a special place in the history of world art

The place of the artist in the history of art

The well-known art critic John Russell Taylor, who works with the London Times and The New York Times, said that even if you compare the work of Parkes with the brightest works of other artists, the difference is immediately evident. His technique is more picturesque, and the imagination has no limit to the narrative. If we talk about the surreal painting of the twentieth century, whose bright representatives are Magritte and Dali, then there is always a feeling of anxiety and stress. At first it was inherent in the creations of Parkes. But it was always clear that in his work he strove for peace and quiet, and in recent works he managed to achieve this.

Today, Michael Parkes is considered the leading master of fantastic lithography and painting, as well as the most famous representative of magical realism. With his wife, he founded the publishing house Swan King International, where his works are published and promoted. Works of the master enjoy great success and quickly fall into the hands of private collectors.