Michael-René (also known as MRPrince) is a contemporary is a Panamanian-American visual artist based in Los Angeles whose large-scale abstract portraiture explores the space between identity and abstraction. Born in Panamá and raised in New York City, his work merges bold color, sweeping forms, and pop-infused energy with the layered experiences of migration, cultural memory, and belonging.
Michael-René (also known as MRPrince) is a Panamanian-American contemporary visual artist based in Los Angeles, whose work explores the tension between abstraction and identity, distilling human expression into bold color, sweeping forms, and dynamic energy. Through oversized abstract portraiture, he merges the raw spontaneity of abstraction with the vibrant aesthetics of pop art, creating a dialogue between presence and mystery. Each face—fragmented yet familiar—invites viewers to engage with emotion beyond the literal, finding their own connections within the colors and movement. His paintings are a celebration of individuality, imagination, and the limitless possibilities of self-expression. Michael-René has been a guest instructor at New York University, lectured at The Harbor for Boys & Girls, and participated in group gallery exhibitions in New York and Los Angeles. He holds a BFA from The Cooper Union, and was a student at New York’s “Fame School” Fiorello H. LaGuardia.
Agua Dulce examines identity drawing from the cultural, political, and emotional landscapes of Panamá and life in the U.S. these works use layered abstraction, spray paint, drips, and gestural mark-making to evoke water as a metaphor for memory, migration, and renewal. Figures surface and recede, suggesting cycles of visibility and erasure, presence and absence. The collection reflects a state of becoming—shaped by movement, history, and the tension between belonging and displacement.
