Dots entertainment: Chicago artist Michael Bonfiglio uses dabs of brilliant color to create a dotty world of fun.

Michael Bonfiglio wants everyone to know he's no Mariah Carey. "You think of these celebrities, people who become really successful, and then they have their breakdown. Like Mariah had her big meltdown. That's so not me," he says. "I had my meltdown early and got it out of the way."

That is this Chicago artist's typically lighthearted way of referencing a past whose struggles have inspired him to create works that explode with defiant joy. Looking at his glorious paintings, you might never imagine that the 35-year-old Bonfiglio's childhood was blighted by alcoholic parents and an absentee father. Like many gay artists--most notably his hero, Keith Haring--Bonfiglio deploys vibrant colors and designs to banish pain.

"Drab colors bum me out," he says. "Working with bright colors makes me feel good, and part of my mission as an artist is to make people happy."

In times like these, it's no wonder Bonfiglio's work has caught on. What is surprising is how far this self-described "dottist" has gone without any formal training or support from the artistic establishment. With a storefront studio and inexhaustible determination, the former hospital worker has made his dream of being an artist into colorful reality.

Bonfiglio trained as a dancer in college, but it was his work as an artist's model that fired him with the spirit of emulation. "Watching art students work and talking with them, I started to think, I can do that," he recalls.

Though he painted throughout his 20s, he began devoting himself full-time to his art just three years ago. Since then he has garnered extensive media coverage in Chicago despite his lack of a sponsoring gallery or patron. The prestigious About Face Theatre just chose him as its first-ever Visual Artist of the Year.

"We were looking for colors and imagery that were as vital as we felt the theater to be. Michael's work leapt to mind," says About Face managing director Chris Sink. "The dots reference impressionist art, yet his explosive color is very contemporary."

Bonfiglio's practice of creating his works while seated in his storefront studio's display window has made as much of an impression as his paintings themselves. Shoppers wandering by often stop and watch him work, sometimes amusing him with their comments.

"Since I'm in the window, people think I can't hear them, but I hear them clear as day," he says. "'What a waste of time' was one of the ones that stuck in my mind. Recently I heard 'You call that art?' I just ignore it and keep on working."

That experience epitomizes Bonfiglio's self-made career. For the record: Yes, he does call it an,. And a growing number of people agree.

Lehoczky writes regularly for the Chicago Tribune.