DPW Spotlight Interview: Michael Hutton

Each week we will spotlight a different DPW artist who will give away one of their best paintings. To enter to win Michael's painting "Summer Morning" go to Daily Paintworks and click on the link at the top of the page announcing their interview.

From Michael's DPW Gallery Page:

I am the artist Michael Hutton. I am a self taught artist and have my own unique style of painting, and I love mixing colors. My passion is creating, designing and hand painting original works of art of nature, birds, animals, still life and more in watercolors.

For the watercolors I use Winsor and Newton professional watercolor paints on Arches 140#, 300 g/m, cold pressed, White, lightly textured, acid free, 100 percent cotton watercolor paper.

All my paintings have their own personality and are painted to uplift spirits, bring a smile to your face and add a sense of peace and calm as well as color to your home. Something that you would look forward to seeing everyday.

To see my acrylic painting site click on this link.

Summer Morning
(click to view)

Enter to win by clicking on the link at the top of the DPW home page announcing Michael's interview.

Tell us a bit about how you first started painting.

I am Michael Hutton, a self taught artist. I have always been in the arts. I began as a musician/playing lead guitar/singer/songwriter starting at age thirteen in a couple of good bands. We had the opportunity of playing at the then Keil Auditorium in St. Louis, which was very exciting, with other huge bands and our band was on a tv show. At that time, one of my two songs that I had written, we taped and entered it in a contest and it won and was playing for quite a while on KSHE radio in the early days.

For thirty plus years, I have designed, created and handmade twig mosaic creations in wall decor and furniture, also being a rustic furniture artist. This is when I began painting. Like landscape, mountain and cabin scenes on door panels, and drawers. My furniture has been in many books, on some covers of books and in magazines. I had been told that I was one of the top ten furniture makers in the US.
I also made unique, one of a kind whirligigs, which I also hand painted on.

Dawn
(click to view)

What mediums and genres have you experimented with?

I have been painting in oil on anything that I could get my hands on but dropped that due to concerns about health hazards.

So I started painting with artist colors pigmented acrylic paint and this is something that I really enjoy. I use the ampersand gessobord to paint on.

I also started painting with Winsor and Newton professional watercolors painting on Arches 140# watercolor paper. I can not tell you how much fun it is to paint with these watercolors! Even though watercolor is unforgiving, I just absolutely love it. I am finding that mixing colors is one of the things as well as creating illustrations that is the most exciting for me.

I paint birds and flowers, landscapes, still life and illustrations for children's books and more.

Breakfast
(click to view)

What makes you happiest about your art?

So I am a musician, acrylic and watercolor painter. I love to create and hand paint my original paintings using the watercolors and acrylics. I want to continue to improve.

I get a lot of pleasure out of reviews when people say how much they love their painting, and it is just perfect, that it uplifts their spirit and how the colors are so bright and cheery.

What I aim for my paintings to do is to uplift peoples spirit, bring a smile to their face, to transform the feel of their room and and bring color to their life.

Winging It
(click to view)

Who or what inspires you most?

I am very much inspired by nature and my other inspirations come from many other artists like from Bob Ross to Catherine Klein.

How do you keep art "fresh?" What techniques have helped you avoid burnout and keep your work vibrant and engaging? What do you feel you are learning about right now as an artist?

Since I am semi retired I thankfully have time to paint. I keep looking for new ideas and ways of painting, new techniques to use. I also have learned that you will always feel that you can improve, the next one will be even better. So you will always keep trying to improve upon yourself.

Morning Light
(click to view)

Thanks, Michael!

© 2018 Sophie Marine