Mike Wolfram is a native Cincinnati artist exploring the relationships between traditional crafts and technology. After almost two decades as a commercial designer and animator, in 2022 he began pursuing sculpture full-time. Due to a growing dissatisfaction with the perishable nature of digital marketing and advertising, he decided to focus on more tangible experiences.
Mike’s interest in woodworking began in 2016 when he started woodturning as a hobby. In 2017 he spent 7 months as an apprentice in a production woodshop in Utrecht in the Netherlands. Mike’s passion for woodworking and its artistic potential was also influenced by his older brother, an experienced fine woodworker with a degree in sculpture.
Mike’s career as a commercial artist allowed him the opportunity to work for international brands like Nike, IBM, Visa, and Procter & Gamble. Mike has also showcased his projection work in the Cincinnati light festivals Lumenocity and Blink. He’s had a lifelong fascination with simple forms, color and geometry that can be seen throughout his work.
The warmth and longevity of wooden objects make them precious to us and give us a sense of enduring connection with the material. In contrast, we view things made digitally as cold, synthetic, and momentary. My art is born from a desire to weave that digital world seamlessly into handcrafted objects, blurring the line between digital creator and craftsman.
For this body of work, I’m examining the symbiosis between these two seemingly divergent crafts. I’m imbuing the digital work with the same legacy as traditional woodworking, giving it a place to live in the physical world. At the same time, the wood inherits the flexibility and experimental nature that only digital work can provide. At the foundation of my art is an exploration of form and color. I draw inspiration from architectural volumes and complex aerial landscapes, seeking out pleasing shapes that I can distill down into simpler compound groups.
While building my work I focus on aesthetics and purity of technique. I tend to embrace the meticulous processes that come both with animation and working with wood. Large pieces can take months to build and much of that work is often hidden on purpose. The precision and detail of both digital art and woodworking allow me to lose myself in the process of creating these complex structures.
