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Growing up in a western suburb of Chicago, Illinois, Mike Notko was encouraged early on by his mother who, while
not an artist in traditional media, was always producing imaginative and creative projects that both inspired
and motivated Mike to create art of his own.
After high school, Mike attended The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Soon frustrated by traditional media
and the school's emphasis on non-objective art, Mike became enamored with computer animation and two years later,
traded his pencil for a mouse and headed west to continue his education at the smaller, more specialized Cogswell
Poly Technical College in Silicon Valley.
In 2001, Notko relocated to Southern California and was introduced to internationally known wildlife and landscape
artist, Philip Journeay; a chance meeting that forever changed Mike's view of painting and art itself.
Residing today in Mission Viejo, Mike paints regularly with his friend and mentor, Phil Journeay and admires work by
William Bouguereau, John Singer Sargent, John Asaro, Guy Rose, Joaquin Sorolla, Richard Schmid, Daniel Gerhartz and Scott Burdick.
Searching every day life for his subjects, Mike strives to capture a moment in time, visually exploring the drama and
narratives that exists in the world around us.
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