ABOUT | markclineart

304-661-8082

I'm an artist, a musician, a teacher, a dad, a cook, a gardener--my life is rich. Pursuing art and music is a way of seeing my world, a way to live life in pursuit of meaning beyond the everyday and to appreciate all life offers.

I was born in France and then lived all over the Northeast when my parents came back to the states. My dad was a WV State Trooper, and he then became a Baptist minister. So first I was a criminal; then I became a sinner.

I started boxing when I was 14 and won a Golden Gloves and a Tough Man contest in college. I never liked fighting, but I've always admired a fighter's fearless spirit. The preparation for a show carries over to who I am. I moved around a lot as a kid growing up and never really had a sense of place. I joined the army straight out of high school, spent three years as a medic, and got married. I'm still married to the same beautiful woman.

I attended WVU for art school and attended VCU for graduate school. I've been making art and music and teaching ever since. I see art and music as the same thing. I got played on a radio show called The Morgantown Sound when I was working on my bachelor's at WVU. In Virginia I got a grant from Jim Beam and had some rotation on college radio stations with a band called Groove Driver. We played bars and dives all over the east coast.

I sort of alternate my focus on art and music. I have three paintings at the West Virginia Museum of Culture and History, and I have many paintings in public and private collections. Music is more immediate with crowd feedback, but art is rewarding, too.