Biography

Most recently, Michelle’s work was selected for inclusion in the opening of Morrison Gallery, in Kent, Connecticut while she looks forward to a solo presentation of her work with Dimmitt Contemporary, Houston in November. In early 2023 she had a debut solo show with Winston Wachter in Seattle. Since reapproaching painting at the start of 2020, Michelle’s work has been widely published in national and international arts magazines such as Create Magazine, Art Maze Magazine, Friend of the Artist, All She Makes, and the Saatchi Art Spring 2022 Catalogue. In 2023 Michelle’s work was featured in the May-July issue of Luxe Magazine, Colorado.

Michelle received a BFA in Studio Art from the University of Texas, Austin in 2007, with concentrations in Painting, Drawing, Sculpture and Serigraphy. Early exhibit highlights include group shows in Denver and Dallas between 2008 and 2010, a solo show in Boulder, Colorado at the Dairy Center for the Arts in 2011, and additional group shows between 2012 and 2014 in Houston, Texas. The two major bodies of work produced during those years, totaling 30 large scale oil paintings have been purchased by collectors in both Colorado and Texas, while a series of 100 smaller works in acrylic and oil have been sold locally and shipped to locations around the United States. 

Statement

I describe my work as a kind of lyrical, abstract expression of emotion, energy and movement. I draw inspiration from many sources including the Bauhaus’ preoccupation with color and simplification of form.

I prefer to work on large scale square canvases requiring full physical engagement. The back-and-forth brushstrokes, whether fluid and subdued, or energetic with abrupt articulation, allude to sound, influenced by the music I listen to while working. Once the initial layer of paint is laid, I discern which marks most effectively convey the central gesture and conceal the rest behind the subsequent layers of paint, reducing the composition to a few solitary brushstrokes. The surrounding thicker-laid shapes are supporting actors to the focal strokes. Their outlines extend the reach of the central markings, enhancing their dynamism through their outline and etched surfaces.

Color is also an expressive force and of central importance in my work, creating vibration through placement and generating harmony and interest where its use is less expected but equally considered.

Upon close inspection, two optical illusions reveal visual ironies in the work. The focal brushstrokes, while appearing dimensional, remain physically flat while the surrounding solid-toned shapes are thick with paint and tangible dimension, lending a sculptural quality to the work. In addition, the focal brushstrokes appear to have wiped away or erased the subsequent layers of paint, in a perceived reversal of application and time.