Harrison Public Library Presents “Cerealism” Virtual Art Exhibit by Michael Albert

Michael Albert has been creating ART since his college days at New York University, where he studied business (BPA (now called Stern), 1984-1988). After visiting many of the great museums in NYC and viewing some of the world’s greatest masterpieces of art, he began his own artistic pursuits. His art has evolved from doodles and Pen & Ink to serious wax oil drawings, to the cubist mosaic Cereal box collages he has become known for. In the past two decades, he has been creating large-scale “Epic” collage works on various themes including History, Literature, Religion & Philosophy, Music, Poetry & Lyrics, Botany, Logo Montages, Color Studies, Mathematics & Maps (Geography) among others. Since the publishing of his book, an artist’s autobiography titled, “An Artist’s America” (Henry Holt, 2008) Albert has developed a traveling Pop Art Enrichment Program & Hands-On Collage Workshop for kids (school age & up), teens, adults & as a multi-generational event called the “Modern Pop Art Experience” which he has brought to more than 1,000 schools, libraries, museums, art festivals & special events all over the United States & in Europe. Albert is also the founder/owner of Sir Real, a brand of fruit juice & natural foods.

Artist Statement:

In a magic moment that changed my life, one day (March 30, 1996) I took a Frosted Flakes cereal box, I cut the cover off the box & proceeded to cut it up into a pile of pieces. Then I glued the pieces down into my own composition creating what would come to be known as “Portrait of An American Classic: Frosted Flakes #1”, and later nicknamed “The Birth of Cerealism”. I soon realized that this was very much in the Pop Art genre like Andy Warhol’s Soup Cans, but instead of it being silkscreened, I had created mine with a cut & paste technique. To me this seemed a more traditional, old fashioned art form than computer generated or digital type art. It also seemed to me to be a modern type of cubism. So, it was old fashioned & modern at the same time, which I found interesting! I soon began cutting up cereal boxes & other iconic consumer brand packages in this way like a madman: literally every day and sometimes several of these types of creations per day, for years!

Over the course of about 3 years, I created over 700 original collages of cereal boxes, as well as hundreds of other iconic consumer products including many of my favorites: Ritz Crackers, Lipton Tea, Coca Cola Cartons, Arm & Hammer Baking Soda, Triscuit, Tide, Oreos, etc, In other words, anything iconic & classic and many more obscure brands as well. I would often create multiple versions of the same brand much the way a jazz musician composes variations on a theme, or how Monet would paint 20 or more versions of the same scene, such as his Rouen Cathedral or Haystacks series. Later I began using different elements of many different boxes to create colorful, detailed collages on a variety of different themes, but it is with this series of artworks created from cereal boxes that it all began. Here is a collection of 14 of my ‘Cerealism’ works to give you an idea of what I am describing.

In my dream, all major modern & contemporary art museums all over the world will ‘have to have’ one of my ‘Cerealism’ works to make their collection more complete!

*On a side note, I began putting my initials M.A. in all of my collages, similarly to how the caricaturist for The New York Times, Al Hirschfeld used to put his daughter’s name ’Nina’ hidden in his drawings. See if you can find the MA’s hidden in these collages.

Enjoy the show!
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