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Michael Merriman began his career as a painter. He’s an award-winning producer and director. He’s also a musician. Merriman, a Master of Fine Arts graduate of West Texas A&M University, began his career as an art director, working with several advertising agencies, including Holland Merriman and Christian, which he co-founded in 1980.

He began his directing career in 1990 and cofounded Pecos Films, with offices in Nashville and Albuquerque. Over the last three decades, Merriman has directed innovative work for clients such as Procter & Gamble, Toyota, NCAA Basketball, and the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, to name a few. He has also produced and directed several provocative and inspiring feature-length documentaries for PBS including “The Art of the Tretyakov from Moscow”. The Tretyakov Gallery is considered the foremost depository of Russian fine art in the world. He has created concepts for and directed over 200 music videos for artists including Trace Adkins, Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn, June Carter Cash and Travis Tritt, among others.

In 2018 Merriman walked away from the production business and made the leap back into painting. “I’ve always been a painter at heart,” he says, “but somewhere along the way I got sidetracked. I guess I’ve come full circle”. His paintings are generally large format abstract works that incorporate multiple layers of paint which is applied using brushes, palette knives and squeegees. “What I enjoy most about my painting process is that I never know where the painting is going once I start. The process has a life of its own and the evolution of the piece is most often a surprise to me.”

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