Michael J Austin is an artist and writer living and working in the South West of England.

A professional artist since 1981, he started his career in the world of comic books where he produced artwork for amongst others Marvel Comics and 2000AD and was also a features artist for the Sunday Times from 1985 -92. As his painting style developed with the use of oils in the late 80’s he began to take on more painterly illustration work with book covers and several film posters. His career took a turn in the 1990’s when he began to paint more seriously and was offered a one-man exhibition with the Jonathan Cooper Gallery, London in 1997; followed by exhibitions most years for the same gallery as well as being represented by other galleries around the world. In 2003 HRH The Prince of Wales took an interest in his work and Michael subsequently accompanied the Prince as tour artist on an official visit to India and Oman.

Starting his career as a mainly figure painter, his work from 2003 onwards has largely been of animals – mainly bulls and large equine heads though with the occasional chicken or pig – where he has been able to use his sculptural painterly technique to good effect. Working wet-in-wet with just the three primary colours he paints mainly in oil.

Currently involved with a new series of paintings, he is once again working with the human figure.

Courtesy of the artist’s website.