When I was in Connecticut last week visiting the Whelans, IN A WORLD OF HER OWN was hanging in their atrium. It’s a big piece (36" x 48") that features their granddaughter Seren. You could say the painting commands attention in a lot of ways.

Throughout the week, I kept noticing light playing across the canvas, a prismatic effect from the glass surrounding the doors. But late one day when the sun was almost down, the painting took on a whole different mood. The background darkened and the yellows came forward.

This wasn’t some chance occurrence. I’ve noticed the same day/night transformation in other paintings.

Toward the end of the week, I was working in studio cataloguing older paintings. The overhead lighting was casting a glare so I decided to switch off the fluorescents to snap a shot of VALLAND’S SONG in natural lighting. The roomed dimmed more than expected but the low lighting provided a “wow” moment as the highlights of the figure lit by campfire popped against the dark background.

When Michael talks about color, he speaks in terms of technique, how layers of paint interact with light to give his work a luminescent quality.

Personally I think there’s magic in it, like he’s channeling color from another dimension. If you’ve seen his work in person, you’ll know what I’m talking about.