Hi, I’m Michelle.
I started painting as a form of therapy. I wasn’t setting out to become an artist or start a business — I just needed something that was mine and gave my brain somewhere else to go for a while.
I’m mostly self-taught, which means there has been a whole lot of experimenting, figuring things out as I go, and occasionally wondering what on earth I’ve done to a perfectly good painting.
Most of my inspiration comes from the places around me and the places I know and love. I grew up in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and I think that connection to the landscape has always stayed with me. I’m drawn to the ocean, trees, old roads, changing skies and the ordinary little scenes that can somehow feel really special.
Painting is still very much my escape. I work full time, I’m a mom, and life is busy, so getting a chance to sit down with my paints is something I genuinely look forward to.
What started as something I did just for myself has slowly turned into something I get to share with other people, which still feels a little surreal.
I don’t have a big fancy artist statement. I just paint things I love, experiment a lot, and hope that something I create makes someone else feel a connection to it too.
Thanks for being here and following along.
A few honest things
There’s no schedule. Some evenings I sit down after work and a whole canvas is finished before I look up. Other weeks the paints stay exactly where I left them. I stopped fighting that a long time ago.
I’m self-taught, so every painting is a bit of an experiment. A few of my favourite things happened entirely by accident and I just decided to keep them.
I paint calm places — still water, soft light, a lake with nothing much happening on it. My head runs loud most of the time, and a few hours inside a quiet scene is the closest thing I’ve found to turning the volume down.
Studio inquiries
Originals are made available directly from the studio several times per year. For questions about available works, get in touch below.