Mike Flisak loves art. That might seem like an obvious conclusion to draw about a man who has devoted his life to the study and practice of painting and sculpture, but yet it is the overwhelming impression that is left after spending just a few short moments in his presence. The passion he holds for his work and the conceptual and theoretical basis from which he draws inspiration emerges with every answer he gives. The most mundane of questions is met with an excited, expansive response that seems to start at some undefined point and perambulates through a wide range of references and digressions before arriving at a conclusion. More often than not, the conclusion reached is in fact more ambigious than absolute.

Ask Flisak if he has made a deliberate progression from representational works to abstract ones, for example.

“I’ve been trained both ways, and I’m finding a happy medium,” he says. “It’s all kind of culminating.”

This culmination of creativity earned Flisak a spot in a thematic residency at the Banff Centre last fall, an experience he thoroughly enjoyed.

“It was really a firecracker,” he said. “It was a very interactive time with the 32 people from all around the world.”

Flisak, who was selected from more than 80 applicants, spent time with artists involved in projects both large and small. The contacts he made at the Banff Centre have led to a pair of workshops, the first of which will run this weekend (April 22-23) with the latter occuring the same weekend as Flisak’s May 5 opening at the Jasper Yellowhead Museum and Archives. This second session will be led by Calgary artist Ryan Sluggett, who Flisak hails as one of the emerging lights in Canadian visual art. 

Teaching and workshopping is nothing new to Flisak. He has been sharing his knowledge and fostering the arts community in Jasper for years. He’s proud to have been a part of forming the vibrant arts scene that exists in Jasper today.

“It’s an important aspect of what I do,” he says. “I’m a natural teacher and I’m also very curious, so I need to know about things from other people.”

Originally from Ontario, and having studied art in larger centres like Montreal and Victoria, B.C., Flisak says it’s the scale of the mountain environment that he finds inspiring about Jasper.

“The scale and the magnitude of the mountains, as well as the extreme differences between the winter and summer months,” he says. “What you’re subject to in larger communities is this diversity, and energy. Resources abound...”

Flisak maintains a studio in the industrial area (Studio 54, in fact) and while he works at the Pocahontas Campground during the summer, the winter is given over to creative pursuits.

“It’s absolutley imperative,” he says of being able to devote himself to his art. “I like to work at night, sometimes very late into the evening, so it’s very important.”

While Flisak believes he will always be deeply connected to Jasper, he may soon depart in order to take advantage of larger markets for his art work.

“I have difficulty seeing a future for myself as an artist here,” he says. “It’s a difficult place to sell the work that I do.”

Jasperites will have an opportunity to get their hands on some of Flisak’s smaller pieces during the Art Fire Sale that is scheduled for the second weekend of May.