MIKE ARNOLD

In ‘Odyssey’ Mike paints monochromatic scenes inspired by a deep connection to the UAE’s richness - its history, people, and dramatic natural environment.

He uses his canvas as a platform for interpreting the atmosphere of life’s experiences and journeys in the Emirates, exposing the unique light reflected both in familiar locales alongside spectacular, distant landscapes and intimate personal moments.

The first 40 years of Mike Arnold’s career were spent as a professional and diligent architect. Thanks to what now seems like serendipitous timing, Arnold progressed through a successful career without ever having to become computer literate and rely on programmes to create building sketches and renderings.

As such, his drawing skills were fine-tuned throughout his life, preparing him for his second career as a full-time artist – something he feels he began as a child, when he would spend every weekend studying art at The Philadelphia Museum of Art, in the city where he was born and raised.

Now, Arnold fuses his knowledge of architecture and his ability to see through the exterior to the inner structure of his subject with the artistic perspective he has honed over time. He enjoys exploring with different materials, and his practice now extends across oil-on-canvas, oil-on-glass, monoprints, oil sticks, and oil-on-paper. He also tries to push his boundaries by moving away from precise renditions of subjects to embracing a looser form that allows for creativity to flourish.

His work expresses a life-long passion to capture the sources and effects of light. This theme carries through all his work, alongside his ability to capture and convey emotion and story-telling through his figurative works.

His paintings are structured to bring forward the feelings of remote imagery to the power of the present space.

Painted with a palette knife, the artworks are extremely striking; black on white with the occasional flourish of gold leaf. The paintings have you leaning in to explore and enjoy their incredible details; undulating desert landscapes and caravans, coastal life above and below the blue gulf waters, and life portraits of the wizened and weathered adventurer fill his exhibition. In his new body of work, he chases the light and energy of life’s journey that has transformed the nation and captures it to reveal the essence of their hard-earned lessons.

"My art is an expression of my spirit as well as the energy I see in other people, horses, or buildings. I have always been intrigued by their eyes, and I see their ability to capture light as something I aspire to with my work. I choose to paint horses because I am very interested in form, anatomy, and muscular structure, and there is something truly majestic about them, so full of power and energy.

My other subjects explore my surroundings and express them through colour and form; I am interested in motion and energy and capturing the moment. I don't want to be too didactic with my art; I hope that my viewers can have a conversation with my pieces, be drawn in, and experience something intriguing while looking at it.

There’s a moment in the process, a single stroke on canvas that opens the connection with the soul of the portrait. When that happens, I have a profound feeling of knowing, a momentary glimpse into the life of the person I’m painting. It’s always a surprise – an emotional experience and I never know when that defining stroke will be placed. The UAE has a richness that is rooted in the strength and diverse character of its people. It is an honor to bring their essence to life through these portraits”"