NEW CUMBERLAND, WV –Thursday, August 1- The hair you see in an original painting by West Virginia artist Mike Swartzmiller isn’t due to cheap brushes.  Since 2002, impressionist painter Swartzmiller signs all his painting with a unique signature; as he adds small snippets of his hair.  An original Swartzmiller painting you purchase today contains the ultimateprovenance and authenticity for tomorrow, just look under the signature.

Painting while enjoying a bottle of Cabernet started as a release from high profile jobs. A self-declared “painterly impressionist”, the majority of his works were on traditional canvas, sometimes dabbling on found mediums: ceiling tiles, pizza boxes, advertising cardboard, etc.

Mike’s“eBay Only Cardboard Art Campaign” at the start the pandemic took “upcycling dabbling” to a new height.  Biddersbegan collecting original Swartzmiller paintings on raw or advertising cardboard. The original 36 pieces sold out immediately.  The “eBay Only” campaign, to date, is in its86^th week selling over 1000 straight paintings at auction.  Cardboard Arttruly creates unique one-of –a-kind works of art, as the cardboard brings character that canvas doesn’t provide. Styrofoam and plastic grocery bags also bring character to the paintings, plus it helps address global concerns that otherwise end up in the environment.

Cardboard Art’s uniqueness extends beyond the actual painted image; corrugation marks, creases and, of course, product advertising showing through the paint. A cat on a Chewy.com box and a tribute to Van Gogh painting on a Michaels’ craft store box epitomizes the unique, one-of-a-kind paintings that can be created.

Mike Swartzmiller is an “Outsider Artist”, per the term “outsider” originated by Roger Cardinal, an art scholar from Canterbury, England in his 1972 book tilted “Outsider Art.” Almost 50 years later, the term referring to visual artists without formal training is still in controversy and often debated. Outsider art is commonly in reference to folk, naïve, art brut, primitive, compulsion, or raw art.  Call it what you may, this category of art is becoming highly collectible and increasing in value in the art world, including major auction houses including Christie’s and Sotheby’s.

In some instances, outsider artists are as unique as their paintings; some suffer from disorders, some spend their whole life creating art not viewed by anyone. But many “Outsiders” create art that can rival traditional art created by artists with high pedigrees. Mike Swartzmiller is one such outsider artist gaining popularity with his works being purchased and becoming collected for aesthetics and/or speculation of increasing values.

The unique mediums used by artist Swartzmiller isn’t the only unique characteristic of an original Swartzmiller painting. Since 2002, being a student of Art History, the artist addressed the issue of forgeries and fakes by placing his DNA in every painting that he created.

The “DNA” coded hair doesn’t detract or interfere with the artwork, as one must actually take a close look to see.  The hair is sealed when the glossy protective sealant coat is applied. In some instances, the hair is embedded while thepaint is wet.

Teams of researchers have been working on new scientific ways to analyse hair samples that could be an important breakthrough for forensic science.One team headedby biochemist Glendon Parker, who kick-started the research project in 2013.

Together, the team believe that their method of identification will provide a complement to DNA testing.  Their recent report’s early results are promising. An advantage of using hair, rather than other sample types of DNA, is that the proteins are far more stable and longer lasting.

With scientists closing in on breakthrough forensic methods of DNA identification through hair samples, the original Swartzmiller painting you purchase today contains the ultimate provenance and authenticity far into the future.

Besides upcycled and cardboard art, artist Swartzmiller creates works on traditional stretched canvas and ACEO trading cards.  Take a look at some of Mike’s work, bygoing to eBay and typing “swartzmiller” in the search box.  Google or Facebook will give similar results by typing Swartzmiller, Swartzmiller Art or Swartzmiller DNA in the search box.

If you would like more information on this topic, please contact Mike Swartzmiller at [304] 670-5563 or email: mike@swartzmiller.com or visit: www.swartzmiller.com