Most successful artists know from a young age that they have an innate talent - or, at the least, an inexplicable need - to create images. It’s a fire that burns deep within their core, and nothing will tamp it out.

In the case of Galveston artist Mike Quinn, his creative wick was lit while growing up in the bohemian, artsy enclave known as Topanga Canyon, which is tucked inside the Santa Monica Mountains west of Los Angeles.

“We grew up Catholic and attended Our Lady of Malibu,” said Quinn, who was born on December 25, 1966. “I remember constantly doodling on my papers, and, in first grade, a classmate told me, ‘One day you’ll be a famous cartoonist.’ I remember thinking: how cool would that be?”

That vote of confidence from a peer was great, and when fate delivered a chance to learn from the Doolins, a family of masterful artists who lived nearby, Quinn began to hone his innate talent.

An Australian-born artist, Leslie (née Edwards) Doolin - who was married to (and later divorced) James Doolin, a successful painter and muralist - founded the internationally famous Topanga Art Tile in the late-1970s.

It was alongside the talented artisan that a then-seven-year-old Quinn spent many afternoons working with clay and creating a variety of creatures for fun, often with the Doolins two sons, Matt and Paul, both of whom later joined their mother’s business and have carved out successful artful careers in their own right.

Leslie Doolin has retired, but her sons carry on their mother’s still-thriving business, which is dedicated to creating inspirational and stunning custom tile and mosaic masterpieces - including schools of exotic fish, coral reefs, mermaids and intricate designs of every scene imaginable - in private homes, hotels, universities, restaurants, churches, theme parks, and public spaces throughout the world. Nearly five decades later, Quinn and the Doolins remain close.

“Mike is a good friend, and I remember when he used to spend time at the Topanga Art Tile studio, known then as Bahloo Studio, doing small projects and learning about ceramics,” said Paul Doolin, a celebrated painter and ceramicist.

“I remember after he had gone out on his own, he returned years later with a gift of a ceramic hippopotamus.”

Quinn’s memories of those early days are kiln-baked into his heart and are the bedrock of his creativity. It is alongside the Doolins that he realized he “actually had talent.”

“I made a shrunken head mounted on a small cartoon plaque,” Quinn said, adding he still has a green and yellow ceramic glazed dinosaur he made at the Doolins’ when he was 12.

“I remember painting it with clear gloss when I finished it, and I remember being surprised how cool it looked - and that I’d actually made it.”

The artistic nurturing Quinn received from a young age, along with the support from his waggish parents - who had whimsically brought the newborn Mike home from the hospital in a Christmas stocking - continue to fan the flames of Quinn’s creativity.

His work includes metal, clay, fiberglass and foam sculptures of quirky sea critters (a lingering homage, perhaps, to his time with the Doolins), fantastical clay creatures of all kinds, and tribal masks, as well as original canvas paintings or prints. Over the years, Quinn amassed a near-cult following of collectors and established an instantly recognizable style.

“The spark starts the flame. You dream up your product, and then you sell your product, get the money, and repeat the process, eventually making and selling more and more, building a bigger and bigger fire. His “big break” came in 1990, when a friend invited him to help spend a $40 gift certificate to Chuy’s, an uber-popular and funky Tex-Mex restaurant in Austin.

“After eating, I noticed a small sign by the cash register that said they were looking for artists for a six-week art show.” Quinn spoke to the manager, Jay Bunda, and was told there was room in an upcoming art show, which was set for three months away. Once home, the sculptor got to work in the studio at Southwest Texas State University, where he was a student, and began creating as many pieces as he could to be part of the next available show.

On January 1, 1991, Quinn loaded his car and drove to Austin to deliver his artwork to Bunda, who was so impressed by what he saw that he accepted 150 fish sculptures, which Quinn had dubbed “Fish with Attitude.”

“Jay called me the next week and anxiously said, ‘You've gotta get down here! … ‘every fish sold.’ It was my big break.”

That six-week installation turned into an 18-plus year association with Chuy’s. It wasn’t long before Quinn’s Fish with Attitude became known affectionately as “Chuy fish.”

“Life is filled with surprises; you just never know.”

Quinn realized he had to cultivate the marketplace and increase demand for his work outside the Greater Houston-area. High visibility plays a key factor in the value of and demand for any artist’s work, and Quinn made a concerted effort to be at trade shows, art festivals, personal appearances and have his work available in galleries throughout the United States. The decade-long, often grueling travel schedule paid off.

Today, those original Fish with Attitude net three- to five times the original selling price on eBay and other sites, and Quinn’s custom work often commands more $12,000 per piece.

His work led to a memorable encounter with Billy F. Gibbons, a legendary founding member of Texan blues rock hero trio ZZ Top, who saw Quinn’s art at a Houston-area surf shop and asked the owner to set up a meeting.

“We talked for a few hours, and he was friendly and soft-spoken. He gave me a ZZ Top baseball hat and what looked like a Zippo lighter. As he handed it to me, he pulled a tape measure out from the Zippo. He said, 'You can't measure friendship, so you’ve got to measure other things.'"

In homage, Quinn made Gibbons three caricature masks: one of Gibbons, and one of each the other two members of the Houston-based, world-famous trio, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard.

At one point, Quinn’s art was available at more than 150 stores nationwide, his art filled a 5,000-square-foot warehouse, and he employed more than 20 people. Some private collectors have upwards of two-hundred pieces.

“We doubled the sales every year and made a great team,” said Jodi Quinn, his wife of 23 years, who met her husband in 1995, has worked full-time with him since 1996.

“I was good at keeping up with the paperwork, and he was good at creating art. I was happy to be a part of something that would bring smiles to people’s faces. …I was just amazed how he would make things without looking at anything. He would see it in his mind and just make it.”

However, the journey has not been without its challenges - or unexpected boons.

The tragic events that transpired on September 11, 2001, interrupted the success the couple had enjoyed and orders ground to a halt. Quinn had to abandon his artistic endeavor for eight years, finding work in industrial and chemical manufacturing facilities and refineries around the world.

It was hard work, and it kept him away from home for months-long stretches, but the pay was great, and he was able to bank a lot of money - as well as conceptual ideas for his creative expression.

One such endeavor included Fly Phoebe, Fly: A Mostly True Story, a children’s book written and illustrated by Quinn that follows the exploits of a tagalong housefly Quinn encountered while aboard an Airbus A380 en route to France. In the charming book, the small winged insect travels the globe, sharing her exploits with readers.

In 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic heavily impacted the global economy, particularly for brick-and-mortar businesses, but Quinn’s business, like many savvy businesses, found a much broader online consumer base.

“Our website sales doubled in 2020, and 2021 was even higher,” said Jodi Quinn, who reported more than $4 million in retail sales since the company began. “Our sales come in waves, but we’ve been riding high since 2020.”

In addition to the unwavering support of his family, friends, and fan, Quinn’s success is buoyed by his 44-year friendship with Dwight C. Brown, 73, a master craftsman whom he met shortly after he relocated to Texas from California, and whom Quinn calls his “secret weapon.”

 

“I am very lucky to work with a guy that is truly a genius. He knows ten times what I’ll ever know… Dwight has been working with fiberglass since he was 12 years old, fixing surfboards for his friends. He has built many landmark sculptures all over Galveston and Houston,” Quinn said.

“We started doing projects together back in 2005… We’ve been working together ever since.”

The Quinns, who own a two-and-a-half-acre property in Santa Fe, Texas, have two children: daughter Amber, 21, a fourth-year architecture student at University of Houston; and son Justin, 17, a 4.0 GPA National Honors Society senior at Santa Fe High School.

“We’ve raised a family and have the best kids anyone could ever wish for,” Jodi Quinn said. “There’s a lot of love in our small house…I’m happy to say I was lucky to marry my best friend.”

After three decades of obeying his inner voice and following his muse, he has no plans to stop creating art.

“My future plans are quite ambitious. I want to build galleries in Hawaii, Key West, and the Caribbean,” Quinn said. “The road goes on forever; ambition never ends.”

To find out more about artist Mike Quinn visit fishwithattitude.com, call 832.425.8661, or email Michaelquinn767@yahoo.com. His work can be found locally at From the HeART Gallery, 2111 Postoffice St., in downtown Galveston.

Upcoming art shows
• Mike Quinn’s art can be seen at ArtoberFest, which is from 10am to 6pm Saturday, October 16, and from 11am to 5pm Sunday, October 17, in Galveston’s historic Downtown Cultural Arts District, located between 21st and 23rd streets. Visit artoberfest.com.
• Quinn also will participate in November’s Friendswood Art in the Park Festival 2022. At press time, the dates had not been set, but the event takes place at Stevenson Park, 1100 S. Friendswood Drive, Friendswood, Texas.
• In addition, the artist will take part in the 41st Annual Georgetown Christmas Stroll on Friday and Saturday, December 2-3, in Georgetown, Texas. Visit thegeorgetownsquare.com.