A Passion for The Arts…
Capturing MY Imagination
I’ve always had a passion for anything that stirred my imagination. I was always obsessive about all the things that inspired me to daydream, and would then compulsively make those dreams a reality.
Whether it was just being outdoors on little day hikes, or weeklong backpacking trips out to the wilderness areas of the western United States I was always feeding my obsession with the natural world. I became an artist and painted wildlife and landscapes.
I used to look up into the night sky in awe and wonder what was out there among the stars, and though it would be years before I got my first telescope, I would at least look up and out there, perhaps occasionally with binoculars. Always feeding my imagination.
I also loved to be creative with music, and so I learned to play several instruments, which led me to playing music in bands, once again traveling all over to share music.
When I was younger I loved to tinker with things, always taking mechanical things apart to see how they worked. I took mechanical design classes in high school and even signed up for a college engineering degree. But my band was going to go on the road so I played music all over the country instead.
But I still had that passion for that which fed my imagination, and for as obsessed as I was with art, music, writing, and astronomy, I was equally obsessed with the tools and equipment used in those pursuits. Along with my nature to take things apart, redesigning or even rebuilding the equipment I used was just part of my nature.
When it came to music I was obsessed with music gear, always building my own instruments, amplifiers and cabinets. When it came to astronomy, I was and still am obsessed with the scopes, mounts, tripods and accessories used in that hobby and so of course I learned how they were built and used as well. I learned so much about astronomy and what I used to pursue it, so that is why I try to help others with their own equipment.
I did go back to college to study psychology, and after earning my degree, I wrote a best-selling book, “The Alchemy of Purpose”. I’ve helped a lot of people being a life coach, and I still help those with counseling and some courses I’ve designed and written.
It is with all these interests and passions I have in life that is the reason for creating this website and using my writing to teach, enlighten or even learn myself.
Take a look around and I invite you to read my blogs. I hope you enjoy and get something worthwhile out of it.
~ Mark Mittlesteadt
Fine Art of Mark Mittlesteadt
Award winning artist
Mark has been an award winning artist for over 40 years, whether it’s portraits, pets, wildlife, landscapes or even surrealism. He’s painted every genre, in every medium on almost every surface you can think of. In his later career he created murals and dioramas for public and private museums.
music
20 years as a professional and semi-pro musician
AsTronomy
Astronomy equipment over the years.
I’ve been looking up at the stars since I was a very young child, always wondering what’s out there. I still wonder, but I’ve used a lot of different telescopes, mounts, tripods and accessories to observe the night sky over the last 30 years. This is but small sampling of equipment I’ve used. I’ll be discussing some of it in my blogs.
