I was born in Kassel, Germany on June 4th 1951.. I am of German ancestry.. My Family emigrated to America when I was 5.. I grew up around Race Cars and Automobile Dealerships.. My Father's dealership, German Motors was the First Porsche, BMW, Alfa Romero, Datsun (Nissan), Volvo and others in Palm Beach County.. I grew up in Palm Beach enjoying it's unique lifestyle and culture.. As a teenager I enjoyed Surfing and Rock Music.. After graduating Palm Beach High School in 1969, I set off on a trip across America.. My first stop was the Woodstock Music Festival.. From there to many places and concerts, ending up in Santa Barbara, California.. In 1971, I returned to Palm Beach to enroll in College.. I moved into the Mews Apartments, where my neighbor Ralph Monteleone, a famous Palm Beach Artist, lived.. Ralph created the so called 'Palm Beach Style' and is still imitated today.. We became great friends and he mentored me in Art and acrylic painting.. I started to work for him as his apprentice, in Palm Beach and New York.. We produced many works and murals for Clients and Decorators.. I started to create my own style and was selling my own paintings along with continuing to work with Ralph.. I was offered to have a private showing at Palm Beach Galleries, but this was interrupted by my Draft Status and shortly thereafter Ralph's death.. After his passing, I lost enthusiasm and didn't paint for almost 10 years.. From 1984 to 1993 while constructing several new homes, I started painting again to decorate some rooms.. From 1994 to 1997, while in a totally creative mode, I wrote some 300 Poems and painted over 100 pieces.. Some of my paintings were of my poems and vise versa.. Since 1997 I have painted sporadically.. An occasional contract piece or a gift for a friend and several for myself..  My mentor Ralph Monteleone said "Never do this for a living." I think that stuck in my head.. I love creating brand new and original paintings and art.. My only regret is the hundreds still in my head have not made it on to the canvas.. But, It's too late to stop now, and time will tell the rest of my artistic story.. Sincerely, Michael Horst Menningmann