Michael Cline’s folksy drawings, paintings, and sculptures of offbeat urban dwellers mash up cartoon styles of illustration with serious modes of painting.
A skateboarder-turned-artist, Cline creates visual tales about everyday people that look battered, lost, and out of luck. Instilled with psychological and sexual tension, Cline’s disconcerted characters drift in an imaginary realm that hovers surreally between the present and the past.
Check out Michael Cline’s current show at BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services in Geneva, Switzerland, buy his monograph
published by JRP|Ringier, and click through below to view more of his work.
Michael Cline, Sweet John, 2008. Pencil on paper, Each: 13.5 x 11 inches; 34.3 x 27.9 cm / Together: 13.5 x 22 inches; 34.3 x 55.9 cm. Courtesy Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York
Michael Cline, Temp, 2009. Oil on linen, 35.5 x 36 inches / 90.2 x 91.4 cm. Courtesy Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York
Michael Cline, Fenced, 2009. Oil on linen, 167.6 x 116.8 cm. / 66 x 46 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Silent Majority, 2009. Oil on linen, Diameter: 45.5 inches; 115.6 cm. Courtesy Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York
Michael Cline, Untitled 2010. Sculpey, fabric, leather, wire, cotton, and metal stand, Height: 66 cm. 26 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Untitled 2010. Sculpey, fabric, leather, wire, cotton, and metal stand, Height: 63 cm. 24.75 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Untitled 2010. Sculpey, fabric, leather, wire, cotton, and metal stand, Height: 24 cm. 25.25 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, New Age Signboard, 2009. Oil on linen, 76.2 x 61 cm. / 30 x 24 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Drawer, 2009. Oil on linen, 76.2 x 61 cm. / 30 x 24 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Natural Action, 2010. Oil on linen, 30.5 x 30.5 cm. / 12 x 12 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Bust the Dust, 2009. Oil on linen, 35.5 x 36 inches / 90.2 x 91.4 cm. Courtesy Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York
Michael Cline, Apocrypha 4, 2010. Pastel on paper, 32 x 29.8 cm. / 12.5 x 11.75 in. Courtesy BFAS Blondeau Fine Art Services, Paris
Michael Cline, Untitled, 2009. Sculpey, fabric, leather, wire, cotton, and metal stand, Dimensions variable. Courtesy Marc Jancou Contemporary, New York