CRANBROOK ACADEMY OF ART GRADUATE DREGREE EXHIBITION 2025  
GRADUATES \\ WORK \\ ABOUT \\
MIKE
MICHALSKI

DEPARTMENT
2D

ORIGIN
CHICAGO, US
Until I die, there will be those moments of distance, dominance, and fear, and in the days that are coming, I ask god to give me the strength to live through the terrors ahead. I am not wearing any underwear and fuck under the soft glow of the television screen. My eyelids are raw, and my mouth is cottoned by the taste of cigarette smoke.

Design as a living language is fluid, adaptive, and reflective of the complexities of experience, transcending the vibrant resilience of the human condition. As a designer, I use this language to translate complex emotions and capture the nuances of identity by using design to connect, empower, and amplify the internal perverted male voice. My work is not about the object of domination but rather a vessel of emotion and connection, creating work informed by legacy—aesthetics shaped by both an attraction to and a critique of traditional representations of masculinity. My work highlights a violent history to celebrate an underground subculture. My work explores the intricate dynamics of attachments—those invisible threads that connect us to people, objects, places, and memories. Through my art, I investigate how these bonds shape our identities, influence our emotions, and ground us in the world, even as they evolve, fray, or strengthen over time, by expanding and rediscovering my design practice through testing the limits of typographic expression. Attachments are both deeply personal and profoundly universal.  They speak to our longing for connection and how we navigate love, loss, and belonging. In my practice, I draw from personal experiences and shared human narratives using texture, form, and symbolism to represent the tension and beauty inherent in these relationships. I aim to hold a mirror to the subtle and often unseen forces that tether us to one another. By making the intangible visible, I hope to inspire empathy, introspection, and a deeper appreciation for the threads that bind us.



Mouth Inside
2024, etched glass, black light, body sweat x 60"x40"
NPC's making hot dinner
2025, Inkjet Print, 24" x 36"
The Farewell Celebration
2024, Screen print Riso book, Plastic casing with diphenyl oxalate, Pink tape, 11" x 4.25"