Michael Gustavson graduated from San Jose State University with a Master of Fine Arts in 1980. Since then he has been a professional artist. His works of art have been collected throughout the world. You will find his art pieces in major corporations such as; IBM, Kaiser Permanent, Seagate, Cranbrook University, Eastman Kodak, McDonald Corporation, and SAS Headquarters. On an individual level, private collectors from the west coast to the east coast have collected Michael’s work over the years, many returning to obtain new works.

  Michael’s work is very unique in that he uses the traditional process of raku and has expanded it by way of his own technique.  The glazes he uses are textural and often appeal to ones senses causing the viewers to immediately want to touch the work.  This comes as no surprise to Michael as he always emphasizes surface quality and texture.  The wall pieces are glaze paintings with fragmented edges giving it both negative and positive space.  The vessels are thrown on the wheel and then hand stretched to create a sense of the human figure. Each vessel gives the appearance of a torso having no head but having the grace of a dancer…truly these works of art are exciting to touch, look at, and admire!

“Clay has been an art form that man has used since the beginning of time.  Every culture that has been discovered through archeology has a historic record of uses for clay.  From utilitarian to sculpture this ancient historical record has always intrigued me.  Since my discovery of clay I have been learning and exploring the many different qualities of clay.

 As you look at my works you will note that I use many different techniques to manipulate clay to express my personal aesthetic views. Clay itself has a lot to do with my aesthetic viewpoint.

 The last 30 years I have used the forms that I create, whether vessel or wall slabs, as a vehicle to express myself as a painter using glaze as my paint.  My most recent works are a series of large hand built tectonic forms.  With these forms I will continue to explore and express the language of clay.  As is the case with most artists, the analyzing and verbalizing of their works is really not the statement, the statement truly is the work itself.”