Michael McConnell was born in Michigan, where he used to watch squirrels from the front window. He graduated from Columbus College of Art & Design, with an emphasis in lithography and painting, and landed in the Bay Area soon after, where he still lives. Making art is how Michael makes sense of the world and his forgotten childhood, creating visual narratives that examine the space between memory and nostalgia.

During his conversation with Molly Meng, Michael talks about how falling in love with Joseph Cornell’s work allowed him to excavate his own language of “symbology.” He also reveals how the ropes and strings used in his work are about lineage and connection, symbolizing a narration thread.

Takeaways

1. You can figure out how you want to make something by learning how someone else makes something.
2. Your personal life affects your artwork. If you’re feeling like you don’t have a voice, ask yourself what you want to say with your art. Are people listening?
3. Slow down and let go of the expectation that you should crank the work out.
4. Be careful what you start collecting!  
5. Color becomes an environment for things and is about pushing something and taking it further.
6. “Sometimes you just go into the studio and just sharpen pencils.” The Woodmans documentary

Michael McConnell

Michael McConnell on Instagram

Michael McConnell on Bluesky

Joseph Cornell

Courtney Cerruti

Brian McDonald

The Woodmans documentary