Born and educated in Tasmania, Michael lived and travelled in the Northern Territory before settling in Brisbane. Since 1985 he has continued to work as a multi-disciplinary artist as well as a gallerist, project curator and consultant with extensive experiences across contemporary Indigenous art forms and issues. In 1990 he co-founded Campfire Group Projects aligned with collaboration and cross-cultural initiatives. He is Director of FireWorks Gallery, a commercial enterprise established in 1993. In 2019 he established Ghost Ship Studio in Newstead where he continues to make sculpture and painting including collaborative artworks. Michael has had 25 solo exhibitions and been involved in over 50 group exhibitions nationally and internationally.