Mike Irvin
Mike Irvin
About Mike Irvin
Mike Irvin was born in Ardmore, Oklahoma and his family moved to Corsicana, Texas when he was a toddler, therefore he considers himself a native Texan. In 1990, Mike and his wife Sara purchased land in the Norse area west of Clifton and made it their permanent home in 2000 after his retirement from The Southland Corporation in Dallas. His life-long goal was to return to art, which he studied at Baylor, after his corporate career.
A representational artist, Mike works primarily in oils. While his main subject matter focuses on southwest, ranching, and western themes, he has never narrowed his choice of subjects. “By exploring different subjects, I can reinforce the decisions that I will eventually make."
Mike has benefited greatly from living in Clifton with a strong art community truly interested in the arts. He has studied under local artists Tony Eubanks, George Hallmark, Bruce Greene, and Martin Grelle, as well as Scott Christensen and Sherry McGraw. Clifton and Bosque County provide much of the scenery, ranches, hills, people, and historical buildings depicted in many of Mike’s paintings.
Since resuming his art career, Mike has been accepted into numerous national juried and invitational art shows, including the Conservatory Art Classic, where he received the People’s Choice Award in 2007. He has also participated in Round Up and The Collector’s Classic at the Museum of Western Art in Kerrville, Texas, the Mountain Oyster Invitational in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Salon International in San Antonio. In 2009, he participated in the "Boots to Heal" invitational show in Richmond, Texas, where he received the "Soul of the Boot Award."
Mike is a member of the Oil Painters of America and American Plains Artists.