Mick Lestrade

Mick Lestrade was born in Normandie, France.he began traveling at an early age, borne on one hair-raising adventure after the next. He went around the world several times. While hitch-hiking across Canada, Central and south America , and the USA , he found his home in Santa Barbara, California, one of his favorite places in the world .

Lestrade retreats to nature, where being in the here and now comes so easily. He finds the peace, sun, and the ultimate beauty overwhelm him with unlimited creativity waiting to be expressed.
Working primarily with acrylic, the self-taught artists wide variety of work sometimes includes
collage and different objects used to create a 3-dimensional look that transcends the accepted
definition of a painting. The process of splashing paint directly onto the canvas releases a spontaneity that results in a dynamic flow, and a work that is playful, humorous, mind-puzzling, subliminally mystical, and deeply provocative .
Lestrades paintings have inspired people of all ages, making them laugh and encouraging them to look at themselves the world and its issues.

Not much says the artist, who was kicked out of all the schools he ever attended.
The trouble started the first day his older sister took him to Kindergarten.
As soon as he saw the school, he knew he didnt want to go in. He grabbed a post-sign.
A woman tried to help his sister pull him out, so he started biting and kicking.
Dragged against his will into a school that felt like a prison, he spent most of his time trying to escape. He made several attempts, of which two were successful, to the dismay of his family and teachers.
He managed to received a bachelor diploma in industrial drawing, from a school in Paris.
He had already been asked to leave that school, and was too eager to travel the world to pick up his diploma.,