Michael Harrison (April 30, 1947 – April 25, 2013) was born in Pinner, north-west London. He was the son of Gweneth, a former nurse and William, who was an accountant. The family moved to Sunderland and then to Quainton, Buckinghamshire, where Harrison’s parents tried to set up a village shop. This venture proved impossible for them to make a living out of, and his father returned to accountancy. All this time, Harrison was focused on being an artist, which he did. His soft watercolors and symbolic imagery are understated, intimate, playful and consistent. But above all, they're comfortable. However, this comfort can very easily transform into boredom if care isn't taken by the viewer. The viewer has to interpret what they see appropriately to avoid this boredom. A strong point of Harrison's style and technique was his apparent vagueness and simplicity, leaving the viewer to take a look at his finished piece of art and come up with their own interpretation.
Harrison became fascinated by art in general and sculptures in particular. He enjoyed himself largely, putting on ground-breaking shows by artists as diverse as John Cage, Edmund de Waal, Callum Innes and Agnes Martin. Harrison took an art foundation course at Oxford Brookes University (formerly Oxford Polytechnic) and then a degree in art history and sculpture at Nottingham University. He was admitted to the Arts Council in London in 1971 where he became the regional art officer for the north-east. Harrison was the director of Kettle's Yard, a Cambridge gallery between 1992 and 2011. During his tenure, he transformed this gallery into an illuminating and dynamic space for contemporary art.
