Nearly all of the wood in Michael's clocks has been recycled from scrap heaps, from Lake Superior driftwood, from the forced harvesting of trees damaged by storms or to make way for construction projects, or from the commercial reclamation of logs submerged for over 100 yrs at the bottom of Lake Superior. Part of his artistic focus is that of recycling, reuse, and redefinition of materials.
While helping a friend install a slate floor one day, Michael fell in love with the stone. The texture, color and varieties of slate suggested to him an array of shapes that create interest. His passion now lies in containing that random texture and color of the stone in sharply defined geometric shapes, then adding wood or metal to complement the stone. Michael's hope is to make learning the time a positive visual experience, since we attach so much negativity to the very concept. He feels that rather than just enjoying our time, we are too often running out of it, limited by it, don't want to waste it or wish that we could recapture it.