Artist of the day: Artist of the Day, October 10, 2023: Mick McGinty, an American illustrator, painter (#1927)

Mick McGinty (1952 - 2021) was an American artist who specialized in airbrush, digital, and fine art oil painting. He graduated from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, in 1979, and went to work for the design studio, Willardson + White, which was headed by legendary airbrush illustrators Charlie White III and Dave Willardson. After three years, he began a successful career as a freelance illustrator, working as an airbrush illustrator for the next 15 years before switching to digital media. Later in his career he entered into semi-retirement enjoying his time as a fine art painter and switching exclusively to oil painting, both in the studio as well as plein air painting.

In August 2021, he was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer, and just six weeks later, on September 18, 2021, he died in the comfort of his own home surrounded by family.

McGinty was born in Sioux City, Iowa, to his parents, Mike McGinty and Dorothy "Mudge" McGinty (née Love). Mike was an over-the-road truck driver and Mudge worked for the local beef packing plant, IBP. He was raised just over the border in neighboring South Sioux City, Nebraska. He attended South Sioux City High School and graduated in 1971.

After high school, he enlisted in the Army where he served two years. He then moved to California and began working at Knott's Berry Farm as a pastel portrait artist while attending Fullerton College. He eventually attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, where he excelled and graduated with Great Distinction with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1979. Upon graduating, he began to work at the design studio of Willardson + White in Hollywood, spending four years there, growing quickly as an artist, before branching out on his own as a freelance illustrator.

McGinty quickly became a sought after illustrator and landed many high profile jobs early in his career. Some of the many movies he worked on include Field of Dreams, Rambo: First Blood Part II, The Addams Family, Almost an Angel, Batman (1989), Dragnet, Flubber, The Fly, Ghostbusters II, Harry and the Hendersons, Hook, Jaws IV: the Revenge, Labyrinth, Little Shop of Horrors, Moving, Peggy Sue Got Married, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, RoboCop 2, Shock Treatment, Spaceballs, Spaced Invaders, Tales from the Darkside, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

He painted prolifically for the Universal Studios theme parks, creating billboards and ads for their attractions, including backlot attractions King Kong, Earthquake, Jaws, and Jurassic Park.

He is most known as the illustrator for many iconic video games from the 1990's, including Street Fighter II, Kid Chameleon, and Streets of Rage II, among many other video games.

McGinty painted a number of album covers for various artists, doing work for such names as Megadeth, The Police, Earth, Wind, and Fire, Whitesnake, .38 Special, and others.

He also painted covers for magazines such as Time and MAD Magazine, as well as many advertisements for other high profile companies such as Reebok, MTV, Levi's Jeans, California Raisins, C&H Sugar, Warner Brothers, and countless others.

In 2007, McGinty relocated to Arizona. He continued to work on commercial illustrations, however his move to the southwest opened up both opportunity and passion for a transition into fine art. He had begun oil painting while still living in the Sioux City area, however the landscapes of the southwest gave him greater ability to spend time outdoors plein air painting landscapes that intrigued him. He painted prolifically in Monument Valley and Sedona, and also painted on trips to Yosemite, the Pacific Northwest, San Diego beaches, and even many scenes from trips to New York City.[9] Above all of those, however, his greatest passion was painting the Grand Canyon, and he regularly participated in the Grand Canyon Celebration of Art.

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