Michal Wisniowski

Michał Wojciech Wiśniowski (born September 30, 1980 in Wrocław, Poland), known as Michal Wisniowski, is a contemporary artist who works in both fine arts media, such as painting, as well as digital and commercial media.

Life and career
Michal Wisniowski was born in communist Poland, from where his family fled to Western Europe seeking political asylum and eventually settling in West Germany. In 1995 Wisniowski emigrated again, from Germany to the US.

He studied fine art and philosophy at Rocky Mountain College, and after receing his Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2003 moved to North Carolina. During his time on the East Coast Wisniowski began his career as an emerging artist in the contemporary pop art genre.

In 2007 he founded Aniwave, the first and only anime film festival on the North Carolina coast, a direct result of his interest in otaku sub-culture. In 2009, Michal Wisniowski debuted a solo exhibition under the title "[ peripheral / interface ]" which met with attention from local press as "a sure-footed step forward."

Artwork
From an early age Wisniowski has been strongly influenced by the influx of Japanese media into the West. His artwork exhibits a strong focus on visuals derived from anime, manga, video games and otaku sub-culture. Influenced by the work of Japanese pop artists such as Takashi Murakami, Wisniowski's work also comments on otaku lifestyle, consumerism, and politics.

"Severed" is an example of a Wisniowski piece which exhibits his experiences with Buddhism, while "Economics" carries the recurring anime motif and blends it with commentary on the US economic climate of 2009.

Books

 * "Paintings" Lulu Press (2007); ASIN: B002ACQSBG