Meet Deano, the Artist Behind Barrs2Design

Michael Dean Barr’s interest in art began in childhood. He remembers drawing an imaginative truck with square wheels and, during show-and-tell, wanting to touch an unusual object rather than just look at it. Those experiences shaped how he sees art: something to observe closely, study, and, when possible, experience through touch.

Michael’s friends call him Deano.

As he grew older, Deano became fascinated by airplanes: how they fly, what keeps them aloft, and the beauty of their design. During his 21 years as a U.S. Air Force aircraft maintainer, he began making detailed pencil drawings of aircraft. His technical knowledge helped him portray them accurately, and he wanted the maintainers who knew those aircraft best to feel proud when they saw his work.

An aircraft print Deano created for the 388th Maintenance Group, displayed in a Mission-style walnut frame he crafted in his wood shop.

While stationed at Aviano Air Base in Italy, Deano painted the vertical tails of seven F-16 aircraft with artwork inspired by their units’ patches. One of those aircraft was shot down over Serbia during NATO’s Operation Allied Force. Its tail, bearing Deano’s artwork, is now displayed at the Aeronautical Museum in Belgrade, Serbia.

Deano’s aviation wall art at Aviano Air Base in Italy, photographed while the mural was in progress.

He also drew caricatures of fellow maintainers, capturing their personalities in a lighthearted way. Those drawings became treasured keepsakes for the people they depicted.

Deano’s work has taken many forms, including pencil, pen and ink, painting, watercolor, and wood sculpture. After retiring from the Air Force, he became a program manager. During long meetings, he doodled to help himself stay focused. Over time, he filled nine notebooks with thousands of designs.

When he began rotating and repeating those doodles, he discovered that individual drawings could become distinctive patterns. That discovery helped inspire Barrs2Design. We opened our Shopify store and began laser-engraving Deano’s designs on a variety of products. Engraving adds depth and texture to the artwork, giving people another way to experience the designs beyond looking at them. For Deano, the doodles also offer a playful creative outlet alongside the precision of his aviation art.

Today, Deano returns to his aviation artwork with a new project: building a full-size replica of an F-22’s F119 engine exhaust for an F-22 displayed at the Hill Aerospace Museum. He is researching the engine’s design and constructing the replica from scratch using plywood, fiberglass, and foam. His goal is to give maintainers and museum visitors a more complete, accurate view of the F-22 Raptor.