Mike Stanko, a lifelong Long Islander, has been showing his unique and whimsical art for over 20 years. From his home in Valley Stream to the world beyond, he finds endless inspiration in the iconic, the familiar as well as the mundane - sunflowers, beach scenes, maybe even a grilled cheese sandwich. Each painting is lovingly created with bright fields of color in his signature eye-catching style. Stanko’s paintings are buoyant and optimistic, reflective of his colorful outlook on the world around him, and sprinkled with wit, reminding the viewer that “Life is for Fun.”

Stanko’s work has been exhibited at the Mistretta Gallery in Locust Valley, the Elaine Benson Gallery in Bridgehampton, the Empire State Building and many other venues in the New York metropolitan area. He has been featured in a variety of print and television interviews, numerous videos, and he has donated paintings and/or Stanko T-Shirts to various cancer organizations, Robert Kennedy Jr.’s Waterkeeper Alliance and ALS benefits, among other causes. Stanko’s works are also in the collection of Vice President Al Gore, The City of New York, 1-800-Flowers, Snapple Corporation, among other private collections. Stanko has designed album covers for American folk artist Caroline Doctorow, daughter of author E.L. Doctorow. His work has been featured on the front cover of the East End publication Dan’s Papers. Just recently, Stanko’s painting “Loveless Café” was used for the cover of writer L.S. Bassen’s latest novel, “Lives of Crime and Other Stories”, as well as Susan Smith Nash’s “Road Trip of The Mind” and Mike Huckleberry’s satire, “God, Guns, Grits, and Gravy.”