Michael Collins
Michael was raised in South Carolina where he learned to love the outdoors at the side of his stepfather, a true conservationist. This continual appreciation has been demonstrated in all fields of his work.
Through his love of all things outdoors, Michael, learned to not just paint what he saw, but to make it as lifelike as possible. Taking great pride in the smallest of details is evidenced in being able to see the finger nails on the hand of a Mexican officer holding a sword engraved on his famous Alamo gun {Clouds of War}, to a flea on the collar of a commissioned dog portrait.
One of the things that makes Michael truly unique is his ability to master all aspects of art. From painting, to the design of custom knives and bronze sculptures, there are very few artisans in his league of limitless abilities. Michael is a world class engraver, with several of his custom pieces now considered priceless and are being held in private collections all over the world, including three former presidents. He has also designed for many outdoor-related companies such as Browning.
Michael fells one of his greatest achievements is having Athos Menaboni suggest that he be the one to do the restoration work on his murals. Menaboni is regarded as one of the greatest wildlife and mural artist of his time. When Michael had completed the work, Menaboni was brought in to view the restoration. After a long time, Menaboni stated” I can’t tell where you did your work. It looks just as it did the day I completed it”. Since that time Michael has restored Menaboni’s murals across the south including the R.J. Reynolds mansion on Sapelo Island for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the Swan House in Atlanta for the Atlanta Historical Society.
Michael's works have been auctioned at many charity events, always bringing an exceptional price for the organization and making him in constant demand.
In addition to his phenomenal talents as an artist, Michael competes in archery and sporting clays, currently sitting first in his class in the southeastern region of the National Indoor Archery Championship and 6th in the Nation. This spring he won his division and set a new state record at the Georgia State Indoor Championships. Michael also won the gold medal in Sporting Clays at the 2003 Georgia State games.
Truly an all-around sportsman and artist whose works will be legendary. Visit his site at www.michaelcollinsart.com.