At Cara Studios Fine Art Gallery I am pleased to  exhibit Mike's  sculptures  and oil paintings at Cara Studios.  He  has an unsurpassed  natural talent  and enthusiasm for his work. I  believe  he is sensitive and introspective and searches for that which comes from the very inner core ....that which is  necessary to succeed as an artist.  Talent and a winning personality will take him far. Cara, artist and owner Cara Studios www.carastudios.com 770 358 3132		JOSEPH MICHAEL MERRITT    One Foot In, One Foot Out Spring Flower   More Oil Paintings   More New Sculptures		Artist Bio  What is art?  What is life? This is the question that all artists ask.  Art is life.  Art became my life. My name is Joseph Michael Merritt.  I was born in Atlanta, on December 16, 1976.  My childhood was wrought with the  isolation with a learning disability.  One insightful teacher however opened up a new world for me  by  teaching me visual expression through writing. Later color design and graphics captured my imagination .  It was a dreamland for me. I left school and home at seventeen;  an adventure yet full of pitfalls.  I learned that the world was a monster with a mean bite. Drawing and skateboarding were  my only outlets. At the age of twenty-two  the Marine Corp  become my  home and the stability I sought.   A long recovery from stomach surgery gave me the opportunity to rediscover my passion for the arts after which I never looked back. I moved to live with my grandmother in Barnesville Ga. andI attended Gordon College.  In this small rural town, my artistic imagination would be nurtured and challenged by  art teachers  and artist friends. I like to say I am an "originalist."  but I truly found "self" in Cubist Surrealism    I prefer straightforward composition that expresses a view of the world that only a few have the "shame to see," or perhaps as a newborn opening his eyes for the first time. My work has been exhibited in  galleries, restaurants, saloons, and homes of private collectors.  I have been featured in magazines and newspapers. I hope one day to open my own school /studio for the arts.