Michael J. Palaniuk grew up in Los Gatos, Ca., a small town nestled in the Santa Cruz Mountains just south of San Francisco. It was there that he learned the basics of building and construction. “ Growing-up in Los Gatos as a teen, I can remember working for my best friends dad, who had a very successful construction company. They were building track homes by the thousands, and in the summers we would work for his company on the construction sites, doing all kinds of odd jobs. It was hard work for a teenager, but I loved it. That’s where I learned the fundamentals of building and framing homes.” While attending San Jose State University, Michael worked at a concrete mixing company driving a truck. This is where he learned the art of pouring and working with concrete, and it was there that his love for building really blossomed.

After college, Michael was given the opportunity to travel the world as a fashion model. He jumped into the world of traveling, and spent the next fifteen years living in Spain, Italy, Germany, New York, Paris, Amsterdam and London. Living abroad, he learned to appreciate the art and architecture these amazing cities had to offer. It was at that time in his life that he truly realized his passion for creativity. “I was surrounded everyday by incredibly beautiful architecture and art and decided it was time to settle in the states and try to make a living doing what I loved. Dearly missing the beaches of California, I decided to try Los Angeles”

Settling down in Venice, Michael soon found a tri-plex and immediately got to work transforming the rundown piece of property into a place of beauty. During this time he caught the eye of a neighbor, Lauren Hoffman, who wanted him to rebuild her home. “I had started working with all kinds of materials on my place; wood, concrete, steel, plaster and tiles. However, it wasn’t until I met Lauren that the floodgates of creativity really started to flow for me. She gave me the creative freedom to custom build everything. It was, without a doubt, one of the most amazing experiences I have ever been a part of.” Once complete, Michael and Lauren opened a custom tile manufacturing business together in Venice, called Venice Art Tiles.

Venice Art Tiles produces custom, handmade ceramic tiles. Our tiles are glazed using several methods to insure that no two tiles are identical. The gentle irregularities in texture, size and color variations are designed to enhance the beauty of our product. Whatever the application, be it fountains, pools, countertops, backsplashes, fireplaces, showers or flooring, Venice Art Tiles will deliver the tiles to help you envision your dream space. In a world of mass production and repetition, we make tiles the old fashion way. By hand.

Venice Art Design encompasses all of Michael's creative talents into one place. Lighting, custom tiles, concrete, fine art, woodwork and landscape. "I’m looking forward to working with prospective clients all over the world, designing and creating beautiful spaces where people feel inspired. Let me build your dreams!" (Let's build your dreams together!)