ABOUT

Michelle is originally from Loughshinny Co Dublin. She recently moved back to Ireland with her husband, two daughters (and dog) after twelve years of living in Melbourne, Australia.

“My journey as an artist has evolved a lot since my original study of ceramics at NCAD. I moved to Melbourne soon after graduating in 2009 where I didn’t have the use of big kilns and the tools I was used to. As an outlet I turned to painting instead, which had been my original love. I rented a small space in a shared creative warehouse in Brunswick and built my practice from there. For many years my subject was the landscape I would walk through every day, Victorian terraces with iron lace work. Parapets, fan lights, sash windows. I was documenting the buildings but also imagining the life behind the walls. During the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, my work shifted to capturing my more immediate environment. My first still life painting was a huge bowl of apricots (generously gifted by my elderly neighbour) and the work simply grew from there.”

Michelle has exhibited extensively and has paintings in public and private collections across Australia and Ireland. She currently works from her studio in Co. Monaghan where her work can be viewed by appointment.