Michael M. Hensley: Paintings of the Human Condition

Michael Hensley’s work is formed with aspiration.
Tally Richards, Art Dealer-

Born into an environment steeped in the arts. Michael Hensley developed a keen interest in painting while in his late teens. At the age of 18, he moved from New Mexico to New York and began his formal training, which included a disciplined study of anatomy. Mankind’s place as an integral force in nature and the struggle of man, is the core of the inspiration with which he approaches his large and passionate paintings.
Art & Antiques-

Michael Hensley’s figure drawings and depiction of human drama, “Ascent” and “Descent”, add a dimension rarely seen outside the world’s great museums.
Art & Antiques-

Michael Hensley created a book before he started to paint some of his masterpieces, a book of detailed and exquisite anatomy. Each muscle, each limb of the human body is rendered in the utmost detail and accuracy. Hensley knows how each muscle works, how each looks when still or when in movement. After he finished his book, he moved onto a canvas to create a museum-quality painting of more than one hundred figures, all anatomically correct, all beautifully rendered and all in one massive room size painting. The time Hensley spends on his work is indicative of his philosophy. “Art should be something people strive for, work hard at and dedicate their lives to,” says Michael Hensley, “not something you randomly knock out in half an hour with no thought at all. Create to the best of your ability, and let history take care of the rest.” Artist’s who take pride and time with their art, who put in years of study and personal passion, are unusual in today’s world of “marketable” art. Unlike other artist’s who’s works have no warmth, nothing personal, the paintings of Michael Hensley, shall we say, seem to have a soul.
Taos News-

The Ascent of Man

The Descent of Man

The Gathering

Allegory of Time

Prometheus Bound

Biblical Works