Michael was born in Oklahoma. His parents had a nomadic streak, which meant that he lived in 10 cities and 15 houses from Texas to Washington state and California by the time he reached high school.

Art was always a factor, and his native talents were recognized early. By the high school years he knew that making art, and especially three dimensional art, was intrinsic to his place in the world.

The late sixties—the cultural revolution embodied in that time, the music, the expansive openness, the hope of real transformation—all of these, in concert with his Gypsy caravan childhood, are the formative context of Michael’s conceptual framework, and for his art and his vision. But for 30 years, art was not at center stage. A growing family, jobs in newspaper, welding, and technical writing, and a bachelors degree in theoretical linguistics at the University of Washington kept him busy, and fleshed out the context and skill set that now informs his work.

In 2002, Michael moved to San Luis Obispo with his wife, Peggy Sonoda, to take up the life of a sculptor full time. Michael’s studio is in the hills east of Cambria.

From 2011 to 2014, Michael was the president of the Central Coast Sculptors’ Group at San Luis Obispo Museum of Art. He was also a board member at the Museum from 2013 to 2015, and was the instigator and driving force behind the Phantom Project, which was a loose coalition of artists who launched pop up gallery shows in vacant retail space around San Luis Obispo County in 2012. He has also participated in the selection of public art in the county, has juried for the Paso Robles Art Association, and is focused on exposing the community to more art wherever possible.

Michael’s focus is currently on public and semipublic figurative sculptural installations for natural, urban and commercial environments.