VIVA Gallery’s monthly First Thursday artist reception will be held on March 2 and
the gallery will be welcoming back artist and farmer Mike Lind. He is equally gifted in both fields of
endeavor, and his exhibited works beautifully combine both interests.
In this series, Mike was inspired by the old adage “you are what you eat,” or as he twists it “what you
eat is what you are.” He has always been interested in the relationship between fruits and vegetables
and the human body, and not just from a health standpoint. He also sees the similarities in form—how
blood vessels look like the veins of a leaf, or how a head of cauliflower resembles the brain. Nature
mimics itself in many different forms, and Mike’s works remind us that we are all made of the same
basic “stuff.” The works are done with Derwent “Inktense” watercolor pencils on watercolor board.
Born and raised in Wisconsin, Mike attended the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting in 2000. After graduating, Mike traveled around Europe and found himself working on an organic vegetable farm in the mountains of southern Spain. It was there that he discovered his passion for growing vegetables, sparking a 14-year farm journey from Wales to Costa Rica to Washington State and an eventual return to Wisconsin. Mike now co-owns Driftless Organics, a 50-acre vegetable farm near Soldiers Grove, and raises grass-fed cattle on his own farm where he lives with his wife Dani.
Mike’s intricate watercolor drawings, along with the diverse works of VIVA’s 18 member artists, will be featured at VIVA’s First Thursday reception on March 2 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm and will be on display throughout the month. The gallery is located at 217 South Main Street in Viroqua. For more information about this and future First Thursday events, contact the gallery at 608-637-6918 or info@vivagallery.net.
Born and raised in Wisconsin, Mike attended the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in painting in 2000. After graduating, Mike traveled around Europe and found himself working on an organic vegetable farm in the mountains of southern Spain. It was there that he discovered his passion for growing vegetables, sparking a 14-year farm journey from Wales to Costa Rica to Washington State and an eventual return to Wisconsin. Mike now co-owns Driftless Organics, a 50-acre vegetable farm near Soldiers Grove, and raises grass-fed cattle on his own farm where he lives with his wife Dani.
Mike’s intricate watercolor drawings, along with the diverse works of VIVA’s 18 member artists, will be featured at VIVA’s First Thursday reception on March 2 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm and will be on display throughout the month. The gallery is located at 217 South Main Street in Viroqua. For more information about this and future First Thursday events, contact the gallery at 608-637-6918 or info@vivagallery.net.
