Brightwire Designs
Brightwire Designs

Brightwire Designs

  • Michigan
  • Sculpture

I work with wire, but I could be most accurately described as a mesh artist, because I weave sections that can be worked like a soft textile or stiffened for heavier applications. The process I’ve developed is based on the principle of elegant efficiency, and...Read More

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Artist accepts commissions.

STATEMENT

I work with wire, but I could be most accurately described as a mesh artist, because I weave sections that can be worked like a soft textile or stiffened for heavier applications. The process I’ve developed is based on the principle of elegant efficiency, and results in something distinctly organic looking. My core methods are built around only a few simple rules laid out by the natural properties and physical limits of the wire, just as a potter works within the limits of the clay.

BIO

Michael became mesmerized by thin brass wire in 2015 during a trip to the local metal recycling center. That summer he made his first lamp shade from wire, and has been devoted to the medium ever since. In 2017 he developed a process for making perfectly round balls without wrapping the wire around any object. It took him over 100 tries to get it right. A year later he sold his installation of brass wire peanut shapes, called “Ethereal Volumes,” to Detroit's Kresge Foundation, and it now hangs in their Midtown office. Over the past few years O'Reilly has refined his methods to develop smaller interior sculptures, while always on the lookout for corporate opportunities in hospitals, office buildings etc., as well as indoor/outdoor public art calls for entry.

EXHIBITIONS/SHOWS/COMMISSIONS

Solo Exhibitions:
2018 - Spring - Annex Gallery, Highland Park, Michigan
2019 - Summer - House on Main, Royal Oak, Michigan

Group Shows:
2023 - Figures or Faces Exhibition - Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2023 - Winter Group Show, Jones Gallery, Kansas City, MO
2022 - Annex Gallery Winter show, Highland Park, MI
2022 - Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center Winter Market, Bloomfield Hills, MI
2022 - Leon and Lulu Fall Artist Showcase, Clawson, MI
2022 - Franklin Art in the Village, Franklin, MI
2022 - Bloomfield Hills Public Library Showcase, Bloomfield Hills, MI
2021 - BBAC Holiday Market, Birmingham, MI
2021 - Purely Abstract Group Exhibition - Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2021 - All Abstract Show, Gallery 311, Raleigh, NC
2021 - Group Show, Jones Gallery, Kansas City, MO
2021 - Abstract Sanctuary, Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR
2021 - Open Theme Exhibit, Cultural Center of Cape Cod
2020 - BBAC Holiday Market, Birmingham, MI
2019 - Innovations in Fiber: A Mixed Media Exhibition, South Haven, MI
2019 - The Bowl Show, Worcester, MA
2019 - Studio Channel Islands Collectors Choice Exhibition, Camarillo, CA
2019 - You Can’t Touch a Ghost Exhibition, Galleri 2987, Detroit, MI
2019 - All Media Exhibition, Detroit Artists Market, Detroit, MI
2017 - Village Workshop Lamp Contest, Northville, MI
2016 - Art, Mix and Mingle, Troy Historic Village, Troy, MI
2016 - “Rejected” art show, Tangent Gallery, Detroit, MI
2015 - Leon and Lulu Summer Artist’s Market, Clawson, MI

Corporate Commissions:
2020 - Rust Belt Market, Ferndale, MI
2019 - La Lanterna Restaurant, Detroit, MI
2019 - Outdoor street light, Downtown Royal Oak, MI
2018 - Kresge Foundation, Midtown, Detroit, MI
2018 - Old Detroit Burger Bar, Troy, MI
2018 - Epiphany Kitchens, Northville, MI
2018 - Whiski Kitchen Design Studio, Royal Oak, MI
2017 - One Salon, Novi, MI
2017 - Aurum Jewelry, Rochester, MI
2017 - Palazzolo Salon, Royal Oak, MI

Public Art:
2023 - Sculpture in the Parks Exhibit, Beverly Hills, MI
2019 - 2020 - Dexter Art Gardens, Dexter, MI

EDUCATION

2006 MFA in Creative Writing, University of Utah
2004 BA in English, Oakland University

AWARDS

2022 SEMIFINALIST, FT. Lewis College Stairway Installation open RFP, Durango CO
2022 SECOND PLACE, Our Town Art Show, Birmingham Community House, Birmingham MI
2021 HONORABLE MENTION, Studio Channel Islands Collectors Choice Exhibition, Camarillo CA
2018 SECOND PLACE, Holiday Window Walk Contest, Eatori Market, Detroit MI

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

I do a lot of private lighting and sculpture installations, as well as outdoor public art pieces.

TAGS

abstract artist, wire artist, installation artist, sculptor, public art, Michigan artist

INTRO VIDEO