Meet Mike Romeo | Multimedia Artist + Audio Visual Performer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mike Romeo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mike, what is the most important factor behind your success?
I find that connecting with other creatives through a mutual passion for the work of making, exhibiting and performing has led me to greater success in my field. As I’m based in New York it can be tough to find your niche, but putting yourself out there as an artist / creative has widened my network of artist / performer friends who I share common interests with. My philosophy has been to just enjoy the act of making and pursuing a creative practice, rather than pressuring myself to arrive at some arbitrary goal. Essentially, I asked myself, would I be doing this whether or not I find financial success, and the answer was yes. I shifted my thinking around pursuing my creative passions to just do it as a lifestyle more than anything else. It’s who I am, and has been my entire life. The bottom line is, I enjoy making and showing artwork and performing, as well as seeing other artists’ work as well.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
It took a lot of work to get to this point in my career. For most of my life I was pursuing mostly music. Only until recently have I started expanding my artistic practice to everything from digital visual art, electronics, physical sculptures, and audio / visual performances, and essentially merging it altogether. I learned a great deal of skills utilizing different technologies through commercial work I did for creative agencies, having had many successful projects for artists such as Bjork, Moses Sumney, and the estate of Sol LeWitt just to name a few. This commercial work allowed me to connect with very smart people in technical fields such as graphics programming, AI, augmented reality, and electronics. I was then able to bring some of those techniques into my own creative ideas. Something I learned over time is that you can bring many things you learn elsewhere in your life to help you in your creative pursuits. It doesn’t always become clear until after time when you realize it helped you in some way you wouldn’t have known otherwise. Also, I could have never imagined a lot of my latest projects would evolve into what they have. I’m taking my passion for music and exploring entirely new dimensions of sound and visual intersections by letting myself be free of creative restrictions.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am a New York based artist but have spent a good amount of time out in L.A. In fact I was just out on the west coast visiting a few weeks ago, so I would love to share the places I’d recommend for other people visiting the city. In Culver City, the Museum of Jurassic Technology is a must for anyone with a unique taste in museum exhibitions. There really is nothing like this place, a totally one of a kind gem museum experience. Another favorite spot to check out is the observatory at Griffith park, especially at night time when you can look out on L.A. from up high. It’s a very inspirational spot and where I proposed to my wife actually. My last trip to L.A. I tried Loreto in Frogtown, a modern Mexican seafood restaurant with really great cocktails, and a gorgeous backyard dining area. Lastly, I had the chance to stop by the Pickwick vintage show. There’s an entry fee, but it’s definitely worth your time if you are into well curated vintage clothing.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve exhibited and performed with DigiAna, put together by Seungjin Lee, a group that consists of artists who deal with multi-sensory digital and analog media, via virtual events, group performances, and gallery shows. Being present in this community of artists and having all of their support allows me to consistently evolve in my work, exhibit and connect with other like minded artists.

Also, Scott Albrecht who I consider a mentor, is an individual I’d like to give a shout out to. His work is very different from my own, but we have a mutual appreciation for each other’s creative practice. He is a really inspirational person to be connected with as it allows me to see on a personal level how he has manifested his own career path, honing his artistic esthetic and skills into a fully fledged brand of his own.

There are too many people and groups to mention here, but I’d like lastly, to give a shoutout to my older sister Tara Romeo. She is a professional painter and designer, in fact if you make it through JFK anytime soon you can go see her creative contributions to the TWA hotel. I’m lucky to have family that is so supportive of my own artistic ambitions. There is just such a strong grounding of support I received from her and have for my whole life.

Website: https://www.night-shining.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_nightshining/

Twitter: https://x.com/nightshining

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@nightshining5662

Image Credits
Shintaro Ueyama