Michael Wille

Michael Wille has held the position of Director of the School of Art at Illinois State University for the past four years. He leads the School of Art and collaborates with its faculty to build a strong and relevant set of academic offerings for the 21st century art major. He helps lead the College of Fine Arts' international initiatives that include the university's first 3+1 agreement with a Chinese university and the first Study Abroad in China. In 2015, he was awarded an Emerging Arts Administration Fellowship from NCAA, and he has also presented as a panelist at the College Art Association annual conference twice in the past three years. In addition to teaching a range of studio courses over the past seventeen years, previous roles include Associate Director of the School of Art, Coordinator of the Visiting Artist program, and steering committee member for the university's Leadership Initiative.

His small-scale abstract paintings have been included in exhibitions around the country and abroad, including venues such as Hoffman LaChance Contemporary in St. Louis, Galleri Urbane in Dallas, and Resolution Gallery in Johannesburg (South Africa). Wille's paintings have been featured in New American Paintings five times, and he has also curated exhibitions centered on trends within abstract painting. Wille has lectured about his work at various institutions including Temple University in Japan (Tokyo), the University of Iowa and the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg (South Africa).

Wille earned an MFA from Bowling Green State University and a BFA from Millikin University.