Michael McGregor American, b. 1983

Michael McGregor (b. 1983) is a Los Angeles-based artist whose work reimagines the still life through a contemporary lens. Known for his instinctive line work and bold use of color, McGregor draws on a visual language shaped by movement, solitude, and a fascination with fleeting moments.

One of McGregor’s most compelling series, Room Service, a book he released in 2024, features quick, intuitive drawings made on hotel stationery including notepads and envelopes, essentially anything within reach. Created while traveling, these works capture fleeting moments with a sense of immediacy and freedom. Evidently, sketching in small pads that fit in his back pocket proved far easier than transporting large canvases across continents.

“If I think about this like a camera with film,” McGregor shares in Interview Magazine, “I take one every single day… I remember, ‘Oh, I was in Paros here. I was in Antiparos here. I was in Sikinos.’” Each drawing functions as both image and timestamp – a quiet record of a moment, place, and sensation.

Working mostly alone, McGregor sketches in cafés, hotel lobbies, and bars, capturing small but specific details of his surroundings. The subjects of his works range from chairs and drinks to flowers and windows, essentially anything drawn from his everyday scene. Each piece is rendered with a quickness that resists overthinking, yet within this swiftness lies a quiet precision, as if each object has been seen with fresh eyes and carefully considered. His use of color, particularly saturated, sunlit tones, is deeply influenced by his lively travels to Mexico City, Paris, Athens, and across the Greek islands, places where visual richness and daily life are closely intertwined.

Rather than aiming for resolution or polish, McGregor embraces the unfinished, offering drawings that feel open, momentary, and alive. The result is a practice anchored by attention to place, to gesture, and to the act of looking.

Michael McGregor currently lives and works in Los Angeles, CA. His work has been exhibited internationally, including in Berlin, Mexico City, Fondi, Miami, Los Angeles and New York City.