Bio: About Mike Ray

I grew up in Detroit and to this day I am still very proud of my Motor City roots. Friends and family alike worked the lines of the auto factories. I started drawing very early, barely intelligible images usually littered my room and walls. Dreams of being the next Walt Disney, Charles Schultz, or Stan Lee filling my head and driving my parents and teachers crazy. I even had my first  weekly comic strip published in the local paper at the age 16 and at that point was completely lost in the world of illustration.

As I got older and more serious I decided to join the Army, where I became a Combat Medic. I met a lot of great people and had some really great life experiences. When my tour was complete I opted out and transitioned into the civilian world as a Paramedic. In my down time between calls, you could always find me with a sketch pad doodling. Sketch after sketch I quickly realized I was working my way back to my first passion - art. 

More than any form of medium, I enjoy pen and ink. Something about hard lines and bold colors that inspires me to create. Now with the programs Illustrator and Photoshop, I create everything digitally making my work clean and powerful.

So what you see here is what I do full time now. I create everything from custom illustrations to book covers and packaging design. Please see my services section for a complete listing of what I do. On my contact page you can drop me a line or keep inform with my newsletter.

Thanks!

Mike (ink tycoon)