Michelle Day

“I use the colours that I see in the earth and the atmospheric qualities of the sky, incorporating texture to represent a relationship with this land.  The layering and scraping back of different mediums and colours represents the revelation of memory, thought processes and the coalition of my thoughts… Gold represents antiquity and red is symbolic of the notion of sorrow, rebirth and the need to nurture.

”The viewing of the landscape creates many emotions – a feeling of antiquity, beauty, splendour and wonderment. The sense of enormity, the harshness and loneliness that it portrays overwhelms me. As well it inflicts so much pain. The story of the landscape has been one of much damage. As the pain of the landscape becomes overbearing I am being drawn more towards the protective guise of the sky. The colour, enormity, light and the ever-changing spheres of the sky fascinate me. I portray not what is before me but the emotion that I feel within my heart and soul.”

”Through my work I want to symbolise the journey of my own life, the realisation of finding my own identity. I am very aware of my European background and the impact that this history has had on my life. I am also fascinated by the notion of ancestral memory.

Michelle has exhibited widely throughout Victoria and also in Canberra. She has a Bachelor of Visual Arts with Honours and is currently completing for her diploma in Education. She received several awards and artists residencies and her profile and work has been included in the recent book ‘Selected Contemporary Artists of Australia’ by Michael Berry.