About
Michael Keyes is a painter and woodcut printmaker, and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) Degree from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Degree from Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. His areas of specialty are painting and printmaking.
In painting, the enjoys a richness and depth of images achievable using oil paints, and the ranges of color, tone, and temperature unmatched in any other medium. A wide range of subject matter intrigues him, including landscape, portraiture, and athletes in action.
In printmaking, he focuses on woodcut, and enjoys the richness of black-and-white impressions on cotton or mulberry bark paper, and the challenge to balance the imagery to tell the story. His color woodcut prints range from winter and summer landscapes to expressive personalities in athletic events and singing, dancing, and praising God.
He is a member of Park Hill Art Club, Aurora Artists Guild, Art Students League of Denver, and Red Delicious Press, and he currently shares his love of art with the youngsters at DAVA (Downtown Aurora Visual Arts) as he volunteers one afternoon a week with their after-school and summer art programs.
His recent exhibitions include one-person shows at Red Delicious Press, Kaladi Coffee on DU campus, Aurora Cultural Arts District (ACAD) Gallery, and University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Health Sciences Library Gallery.
Group Shows include “Traditional Printmaking,” at Core New Art Space, in the Santa Fe Arts District of Denver, “Gateway to the Rockies” Exhibition at the Aurora History Museum, Members’ Exhibition at the Aurora Cultural Arts District Gallery, “Press Play,” at Lincoln Center for the Arts in Fort Collins, “Pressing Matters,” and “Saving Face” at Art Students League of Denver.
He participated in the Escalante Art Festival, in Escalante, Utah, and won Honorable Mention for plein air woodcut printmaking in 2018, and participated in the “Big Ink” event at Red Delicious Press, in Aurora, CO., in 2019. Michael carved and printed the large woodcut print, "Home in the Hollow" in conjunction with the Big Ink Event.