Michael Soles was born in 1943 in New York City but spent his childhood among the artists of East Hampton, New York. His father, William, moved the family to East Hampton to pursue his own artistic pursuits in the community that formed there at that time (which included such figures as Willem de Kooning  and Jackson Pollock).

 

Micheal's later work showed a blending of these early abstract influences with his esteem for more realistic artists's work (such as that of Thomas Eakins).  Michael showed an early interest in art and chose to further his studies at SUNY New Paltz in the 1960's. While he did not complete his degree he did meet his future wife, Karen.

 

To support the growing family he and Karen were creating he engaged in a variety of creative pursuits, ultimately settling on jewelry making as a way to provide income. His jewelry tended to present as almost small wearable sculptures, often containing individual figures as well as decorative forms.

 

During the 1960's, 70's and the early part of the 1980's Michael continued to pursue fine arts, culminating with the creation of the statue at Red Jacket Park located in Penn Yan,  NY. This work was the culmination of Michael's abilities and interests; displaying his admiration for native american culture and his creative approach- blending realism with more abstract flourishes. 

​

In the years following the completion of Red Jacket Michael developed a serious mental illness and stopped producing art. Sadly, he spent the last years of his life in a mental hospital and passed away in August of 2016 from pneumonia. 

​

Click here for more photos of the sculpture Red Jacket.