Michael Dargas
Date of Birth: 22.10.1983
Cologne, Germany
Michael Dargas, born in 1983 in Cologne, Germany, displayed an early passion for art, creating and selling oil paintings from a young age. His talent was publicly showcased at eleven when he reproduced old masters' paintings using pastel and chalk in front of the Cologne cathedral. His artistic journey led him to an art school, where he graduated as the only child in a class of adults, mastering various techniques and three-dimensional arts.
Dargas established himself in the tattoo scene in his early twenties, earning numerous awards and accolades. He also founded the tattoo studio Cologne Ink in Germany, where he worked from 2001-2014.
Inspired by artists such as Dali, Caravaggio, and HR Giger, he devoted himself to hyperrealism, capturing intimate snapshots with oil paint, reflecting intense studies of his subjects.
Currently based in Los Angeles, Dargas has showcased his work in various solo exhibitions and participated in international art fairs, including Opera Gallery in Hong Kong, New York, and London, among others.
Exhibitions
- 2019 C24 Gallery, New York, USA (solo)
- 2018 Opera Gallery, Hong Kong, C (solo)
- 2017 C24 Gallery, New York, USA (solo)
- 2016 Opera Gallery, London, UK (solo)
- 2015 Enric Miralles meets Mike Dargas, Palau de Casavells, ES
- 2015 Mike Dargas - Malerei, Ponyhof Gallery, Munich, DE (solo)
- 2015 Opera Gallery, London, UK
- 2014 Neue Photokunst & Friends, Galerie Display, Cologne, DE
- 2013 Freud lässt grüßen, Galerie Atelier IS., Walhorn, BE
Fairs
- 2018 Art Miami, C24 Gallery, Miami, USA
- 2017 Art Miami, C24 Gallery, Miami, USA
- 2016 Art Miami, C24 Gallery, Miami, USA
- 2016 Contemporary Art Fair Istanbul, C24 Gallery, Istanbul, TUR
- 2016 Art New York, C24 Gallery, New York, USA
- 2016 Art Karlsruhe, WHITECONCEPTS, Karlsruhe, DE
- 2015 Contemporary Art Fair Istanbul, C24 Gallery, Istanbul, TUR
- 2015 Wiener Kunst - und Antiquitätenmesse, CONTEMPO Fine Art, Vienna, AT
- 2015 STROKE Art Fair, Munich, DE
- 2013 art;pul Kunstmesse, Cologne, DE
- 2013 ARTig, Kommandeursburg, Cologne, DE
Michael Dargas
Cologne, Germany