Michael DeNeil Kort was born on March 14 in Los Angeles, California. Michael has been in over 100 group shows and 21 solo shows, completing over 1000 paintings. His artwork is appreciated all over the world, and collected in the United States and Europe. 

At the age of 16, Michael founded SCAS Sports Cards. He specialized in buying and selling baseball cards and other sports memorabilia. 

He attended the University of California at Santa Barbara, and while in school he opened up one of the first baseball card shops in Beverly Hills and founded the California Association of Entrepreneurs. He was interviewed by the Wall Street Journal for a front page story. At this time he had an offer from the Entrepreneur Program at USC. 

He returned to the family business. He started as a messenger driver and within a 3 year period he became president. He left this job and started his own business representing artists. 

While working with artists, Michael started to paint again to help him understand the creative process an artist experiences. During this 9 month period, he completed 270 paintings and decided to show his artwork in public for the first time. 

He displayed his artwork at Venice Beach, California; with crowds of people admiring his artwork he was encouraged by an artist friend to show his artwork to galleries. Within one week, he was asked to be part of a major group show in Santa Monica that was going to have works by the "Next Generation" of great artists to emerge out of Los Angeles. This was his first major show, and he now decided he wanted to be an artist. 

Michael was asked to have his art studio in a restaurant inside of the hotel Ma Masion in Los Angeles. As part of an effort to recreate the excitement of Paris, he along with 3 other artists would paint while people enjoyed their meals. It was during this time that he mainly concentrated on "Action Painting", as this style of painting was more exciting to watch. 

He was a part of a major art show in Encino highlighting artists who specialize in abstract art. He was also selected to do artwork for the producers of Melrose Place, teach children at Cheviot Art Center, and he was featured on cable TV throughout the world.  

Michael moved back to Santa Barbara. At this time he became represented by NARSAD Artworks. He returned to finish his education and graduate from the University of California at Santa Barbara. He also pursued a Masters at Antioch University in Clinical Psychology. 

NARSAD Artworks published a National poster of his painting called "Celebration". This poster gave him National recognition and was asked to sign copies for the collection of Tipper Gore and Rosilyn Carter. 

He was selected to be featured on the Discovery Channel along with Kay Jamison about the link between creative genius and Bipolar Disorder. He was also one of 18 artist selected from a group of 3000 artists world wide to be in a hard bound book called "Sunshine From Darkness".  

Michael had selected artworks being exhibited around the USA being displayed in galleries, art shows, and museum collections: including selected works on display at "The Exposition & Sales of American Art at the Armory" in Philadelphia, PA. (October 17-19), that was advertised in the magazine Art News. 

He had paintings on CBS News "60 Minutes" with Mike Wallace. As well as having the opportunity to meet the Dalai Lama in a private reception as a UCSB alumni.

In the 21st century Michael has mainly focused on doing innovative abstract works, outsider art, attending art shows, and producing a line of Internet Artist trading cards. Michael has had the opportunity to meet artists Julian Schnabel, Ed Moses, Ed Ruscha, David Einstein, and architect Frank Gehry. 

Michael's last art show was the 99buck Sale at Hotel Zoso through the Palm Springs Art Museum.  

Contact him through Myspace or Facebook.