Michael Rea

Michael Rea was born in Eugene, Oregon in 1958. He lived his entire childhood in the Pacific Northwest and graduated form Crater High School in Central Point, Oregon, just north of Medford. It was during high school that he first met Lillian Reed, who would become his teacher and mentor. Lillian Reed was a painter and own of the Higher Grounds gallery in historic Jacksonville, Oregon. Lillian was also an Illustrator for Harry and David gourmet foods, which was founded at Bear Creeks Orchards in the Rogue River Valley near Medford.

Lillian attended the church that was pastored by Michael’s father, and when Michael was 15, she offered to provide him with art lessons in her home. Lillian was a traditional realist and she emphasized strong drawing skills as a foundation to painting in a variety of media. From her instruction, Michael gained a breadth of experience in a variety of media including: pencil, charcoal, pen and ink, watercolors, acrylics, oils and pastels.

After graduation, Michael attended Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA where he majored in Chemistry. During the summer months, he would return to Medford, working at a grocery store in Jacksonville, and in his spare time painting on location with Lillian. Their friendship continued for years after, and during his time in college and graduate school, he had space set aside for him in the Higher Ground Gallery.

Westmont College is a Liberal Arts college which allowed Michael to step away from his major on occasion and enroll in art classes. It was here that struck up a friendship with Dr. Paul Kline from the Art Department.

After graduating from Westmont College, Michael enrolled at University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, in order to complete a Ph.D. in Chemistry. It was at this time he fell in love with teaching, and chose to complete his M.S. and to obtain a secondary teacher credential. He began his teaching career back in home in the Pacific Northwest, before moving to Temecula, CA in 1987.

While teaching science at The Linfield School in Temecula, Michael was asked to step in and head up the Art Department with the sudden departure of the high school art teacher. He turned the program around and grew the program from an enrollment of 40 students to 120 students in three years. He recruited and trained an additional art teacher and continued to serve as Head of the Division of Arts and Sciences. Michael has 37 years teaching experience at the secondary level and 5 years teaching experience at the college level.

Michael continued to paint, taking brief hiatuses to help raise his three children. While living in Temecula, he was briefly a consignee in The Loft Gallery in Old Town Temecula (now closed), a member of the Temecula Art Association and the Fallbrook Art Association. He participated in a variety of Art Shows and festivals in the Temecula Valley.

The primary focus of Michael’s art has been scenes from nature. He and his wife have traveled extensively and he has painted scenes from nearly every National Park in the western United States and Canada.

Michael and his wife Janet have three children and seven grandchildren. After 32 years in the Temecula Valley, they relocated to Mather, CA in 2019 to be closer to their grandchildren. Michael currently teaches Chemistry and Physics at Bradshaw Christian High School in south Sacramento.