Page 60 - August 2017

Pursuing His Passions
Mikel Donahue’s life experiences came together to form his destiny. by Diane Rice
Since the age of 9, Mikel Donahue’s dream was to paint and raise horses. Today, after a 33-year design career in the advertising business, he’s doing just that.
“I decided it’s very difficult to make a living as an artist,” he says. “So, the next best thing was to get into the graphic and commercial design aspect. I was still creating and designing and doing things artistically. And, it was a regular pay check. That was probably the best thing I could ever have done. I had a great career and there are days when I miss it a lot.”
But around 2003, fate — and his bride, Christie — stepped in and encouraged him to pursue art full time. Spurred by her encouragement, he combined his artistic talent with his roots in the cowboy lifestyle to put a creative curve on his career.
Since then, his work — focused on the western lifestyle, horses and racing — has stepped off the covers of numerous magazines, including the Speedhorse 2017 Stallion Register, Western Horseman, American Cowboy, America’s Horse, AQHA Racing, Quarter Horse Journal, Western Art Collector, Art of the West and Southwest Art. He’s painted many commissioned works, been featured in shows across the West, and won many awards — the pinnacle of which came in 2016 when he was inducted as a member of the prestigious Cowboy Artists of America.
“I’ve always admired CAA as the epitome of what western art is,” Mikel says. “In its 52 years, there have only been about 100 members. It’s a very humbling thing to be in the company of artists like Bill Owen, Tom Ryan and Tim Cox. It was a huge honor and career changer.”
58 SPEEDHORSE, August 2017