How I Stumbled Into Mike Berglund’s World
Okay, so today I dove headfirst into figuring out why Mike Berglund’s art hits different. You know how sometimes you just see stuff online and it stops you? Yeah, that was me with his work.
First step? I grabbed coffee. Obvious. Then I spent way too long just clicking through images of his pieces online. Like, dozens of them. Felt a bit overwhelmed at first, honestly. His stuff is messy. Like, gloriously messy. Not careful or polished in that “trying too hard” way.
One painting kept pulling me back – some abstract landscape thing. Thick paint, weird textures everywhere. I leaned in, squinting at the screen. Thought: “Hold up, is that… like, a plastic bag stuck in there? Or maybe dryer lint?” Seriously! That was the initial “wait, what?” moment.
So, I decided I needed to understand this dude’s process. Forget art theory mumbo-jumbo. I wanted to know the actual dirt under his fingernails way he worked. Went looking for any videos, interviews, anything where he showed his hands doing things. Found this one old clip of him mixing paint right on the canvas with a freakin’ putty knife.
That got me curious about his materials. Went down a rabbit hole:
- He mixes sand and dirt right into his paint? For real texture.
- Uses old cardboard scraps like they’re fine paper.
- Leaves stuff out in the rain? Sun? Whatever? Just lets the weather do its thing.
- Seriously glues everyday junk onto the canvas – bits of wire, paper scraps, I swear I saw a dried coffee cup ring once.
Feeling inspired (and maybe a little reckless), I actually tried a tiny version myself. Grabbed a scrap of wood. Slapped on cheap acrylic paint way too thick. Stuck some gravel from my driveway into it. Poured my cold coffee dregs over part of it. Left it on the porch overnight.
Checked it this morning. It looked like total crap. But kinda fascinating crap. The way the coffee stained the thick paint, how the gravel stuck out… it felt rough and real, not smooth and fake.
That’s when it kinda clicked for me. It’s not about painting something “pretty.” Berglund’s thing is about making stuff feel lived-in. Like it’s got a history you can almost touch.
My big takeaway? It’s the embracing of the mess, the accidents, the weird textures from junk we normally throw away. He doesn’t fight the roughness; he uses it. Makes his paintings feel way more human. Less like they were made in a sterile studio, more like they were dug up. That’s the magic I think. He builds the “imperfect” right into the piece, and that makes it feel totally real.