ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) — At last year’s Balloon Fiesta, one tucked-away art installation may have caught some eyes. On the back of a tent, a message made of fuchsia balloons read: “Imagine if we measured success by the amount of safety people felt in our presence.” It was one of many typographic art pieces by Mike Schneider, an Albuquerque native and Portland-based artist, who uses fake flowers and reused mylar balloons to bring quotes to life.
“I always knew typographic or quote art was always in my future. And I found the fake flower petals…” said Schneider. “I started doing balloon quote art, too. And I just never looked back. It was really fulfilling and wonderful. And I did it for about two years before I finally found an audience in May of 2020 and finally blew up.”
For Schneider, the creative instincts started young, but when he moved to LA, he found himself more focused on his retail management job. Towards the end of his stint in Los Angeles, the itch for art returned, and when he packed up to Portland 13 years ago, his creativity “erupted.”…