The lines of a life Michael Bell grew up in Lyndhurst, New Jersey, spending much of his early years in and around New York City. His hands first learned the weight of a brush under the guidance of his maternal grandmother, Violet Vallery, a self-taught artist. By the age of five, he was already participating in juried exhibitions. This early immersion in the physical act of making art shaped a practice that would later bridge the gap between the classroom and the studio. He pursued formal training at Lycoming College in Pennsylvania, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting, and later stu…