September Artist of the Month

Posted on 27 August 2026
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Artist of the Month: Seadog Mickey “HAHA!” Mahan

A Finger Lakes original finds art, humor, music, and inspiration everywhere!

What happens when a Finger Lakes boy, artist, poet, creative adventurer, free-jazz enthusiast, collector of wonderfully odd materials, and unapologetic lover of fun gets an entire month (and a wall) to himself?

You get Seadog Mickey “HAHA!” Mahan!

For the month of September, The Art Store is delighted to feature local artist and creative force Mickey Mahan, whose work is every bit as unconventional, playful, spontaneous, and gloriously outside-the-box as the artist himself.

Join us throughout September on the second-floor mezzanine gallery to experience Mickey’s work in person. And kick off the month with us at an Artist Reception on Saturday September 5th from 1–3 PM in The Solarium. Come meet Mickey, see his work up close, and spend an afternoon getting to know the wonderfully unconventional mind behind it.

A Finger Lakes Flow

Mickey is a self-described “Finger Lakes boy,” from Geneva at the foot of Seneca Lake. That proximity to water, he says, has found its way into everything he does.

“The proximity to water has put a swoosh and flow into all that I am and do—AHOY!”

That sense of movement seems to run through his entire creative philosophy. Mickey doesn't believe creativity needs to stay inside a particular medium, discipline, or set of rules. Instead, he channels that energy into everything he does.

His artistic influences live firmly to the left of center: outsider art, free jazz, wild writing, and anything sufficiently iconoclastic to get his creative juices flowing.

Among the artists and writers who have influenced him are Pollock, Dubuffet, Picasso, and Grooms, along with musicians Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, Larry Coryell, and Frank Zappa, and writers including Jack Kerouac, Henry Miller, Rumi, and Hafiz.

In other words: don't expect predictable.

It All Started With “Let's Make Stuff”

When did Mickey begin creating?

If we're talking about visual art, the story begins years ago in his flat on Tipperary Hill. He wanted something to put on the walls, so he went to the store, bought some art supplies, and let it rip.

And it took off from there.

Soon, the search for materials became part of the adventure. Mickey began picking things up in the street, in junk shops, at flea markets, and wherever else something caught his eye.

The exploration and discovery of the materials themselves became every bit as much fun as making the art.

That philosophy still defines his work today.

Junk, Scraps, Ashes & Possibility

Ask Mickey about his favorite medium and you're unlikely to get one simple answer.

It depends on the series.

For CONSTRUCTIONS, he works with scraps of wood, pieces of old newspaper, rusted metal, fireplace ashes, dust clumps from vacuum cleaner bags, found feathers, and oil paint.

For PENCIL & PASTEL PICS, he uses torn pieces of typing paper, smeared charcoal pencil, and smeared oil pastel.

Other series incorporate India ink and acrylic paint.

The materials may be humble, discarded, or overlooked, but in Mickey's hands they become something else entirely.

This is part of the magic of his work: the willingness to look at something ordinary and ask, What else could this be?

Mickey's creative adventure isn't simply about making an object. It's about discovery—finding possibility in materials, ideas, accidents, and the unexpected.

Inspiration Finds Him

Mickey doesn't spend much time waiting around for motivation.

In fact, he'd rather talk about inspiration.

“I prefer inspiration to motivation. Inspiration works from the inside out. Motivation from the outside in.”

For Mickey, inspiration comes directly from the Source. Tune into that internal wellspring, he says, and creativity overflows.

So where does he find inspiration?

“Here. There. And everywhere. Actually, inspiration finds me!”

When does he feel most creative?

“Anytime. Always.”

And that's because Mickey doesn't limit creativity to one particular form or practice. His creative energy is something he carries into every part of life.

His preferred working hours tend to be in the morning, after he and his little dogs have had their romp at the field. Then, he says, he's feeling “equally frisky.”

It's a very Mickey answer ... and perhaps the perfect philosophy for an artist who works through instinct, curiosity, humor, play, and surprise.

The Art Is... in the Doing

Mickey's approach to developing his skills is wonderfully direct.

“I put on my Unthinking Cap. Open my heart and mind. And stretch out (figuratively) on my art table to be had by the Muses.”

In other words:

“My skills are developed in the doing.”

There is no precious formula. No waiting until everything is perfect.

You simply begin.

And when asked what is the one thing every artist should hear, Mickey's answer is equally simple:

“His/Her own Heart!”

Turn It Up

Mickey's studio sounds less like a solemn temple to artistic seriousness and more like an invitation to have a very good time.

He works in a large room at the back end of his downstairs, with big windows looking out onto the yard and garden. He shares the space with his wife, and the walls are plastered with fun stuff.

There is a turntable. There is a CD player.

And there is music.

Mickey prefers music to television while creating, especially his collection of vinyl jazz LPs. And sometimes, when the mood strikes, he takes a break and dances around the studio.

There is also, naturally, a beer fridge in the corner.

A midday sofa snooze is apparently not out of the question either.

It sounds less like a conventional artist's studio and more like a creative clubhouse—and that seems exactly right.

Art Should Kick Complacency in the Keister

For Mickey, art is not merely decoration.

It has a job to do.

“It kicks complacency in the keister!”

Without art, Mickey says, society risks becoming one giant couch potato, with eyes the size of a television screen.

Art undermines groupthink. It deconstructs institutions and the assumptions they're built upon. It taps into the veins of joy, celebration, and possibility that everyday routine can deny.

And, in one of Mickey's wonderfully vivid turns of phrase:

“Art paints a mustache on every puss that takes life seriously.”

Art gives us the gumption to go for broke.

Perhaps that's exactly what makes Mickey's work so engaging. It doesn't ask us to sit politely and admire. It invites us to look differently, laugh a little, question a little, and remain open to possibility.

Hear Your Heart. Follow the Muse.

If there is a thread running through Mickey's entire creative philosophy, it might be this:

Listen inward. Stay curious. Make things. Have fun.

His skills are developed by doing.

His inspiration comes from everywhere.

His influences come from the edges.

His materials come from wherever he happens to find them.

And his creativity isn't confined to a studio, a medium, or even the traditional definition of “art.”

It's simply part of how he moves through the world.

Maybe that's the real secret behind the swoosh and flow.

So come to The Art Store. Go upstairs. Wander through the gallery. Look closely. Then look again.

Find the scraps. Notice the textures. Follow the strange combinations. Catch the humor. Discover the unexpected.

And see where Seadog Mickey “HAHA!” Mahan's particular brand of creative swoosh and flow takes you.

We’ll see you there!

XOXO,
Your Friendly Neighborhood Art Store

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