Mike Engle has always been a designer and builder,
dealing with shapes, dimensions, angles, proportions and balance. Mike gained discipline and a love of drafting
and creating with his hands and tools from his father, a machinist in the
aerospace industry, who worked with very precise tolerances and measurements.
When his career path took him to real estate development,
he continued working with spatial relationships, colors and design on a much
larger scale. Working with architects,
interior designers and landscape architects helped establish his personal
tastes and love of geometric configurations, colors and spacial relationships. Mike started working on his art in the late 1980’s. He started with painting on canvas then progressed
to working with three dimensional canvas wall sculptures where triangles formed
the basis of his geometric designs. As
he progressed in his vision, the materials he used in his wall sculptures came
to include metals such as copper, bronze, sealed lead, zinc and stainless
steel.
His pieces are a mixture of materials, textures and
colors blended together to create a unique visual experience. Subtle angles and curves lend an air of
boldness and familiarity to the sculptural shapes and industrial aspects of his
creations. His fascinations with
geometric shapes and his unique use of colors are his trademarks. He also uses the diversity of metal textures,
colors and patinas in his work.
The way light plays off the art is the key to his
presentation as his distinctive sculptures reflect all elements of the
surrounding environment. Once placed in
natural light or accented with an artificial light source, no two hours of any
two days will be the same. As the times of day and season of the year change,
so does the look of his art.
He lists artists Victor Vasarely, Piet Mondrian, Paul
Klee, Rufino Tamayo and Alexander Calder as major inspirations.
Mike Engle is a native of Southern California and
currently lives and works in the Naples Island area of Long Beach.
Contact Mike at: Mike@MREngle.com or 949-266-7804
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"Link"
Copper, Polished Stainless Steel, Sealed Lead,
Brass and Canvas over wood.
72" x 62" x 4"
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