Michael H.H. Næss

Michael H.H. Næss (b. 1984, Stavanger, Norway) is an artist based in Norway. His work investigates thresholds between the animate and inanimate, the interior and exterior, and the presence or absence of relationality within a perceptual field. His current series, Light On, asks what it means for something to be alive, or to suggest life, in situations where familiar human relational structures no longer apply. Næss’s interest in these states of suspension and latency reflects a long-standing engagement with perception, distance, and the spaces between.

Drawing on historical oil painting methods, particularly those developed during the Venetian and Dutch Golden Age, Næss employs a layered process to explore how traditional techniques can engage contemporary concerns. His work invites the viewer into spaces where connection might occur, fall apart, or radiate outward.

In 2025, Næss has exhibited at Gallery Rusha (Los Angeles), Acid Baby Studio (Eastbourne, UK), and the Kanvas festival (Stavanger, Norway). He studied visual art at Nansenskolen and specialized in painting at the Nordic Institute for Stage and Studio