Sam Michelle
Melbourne-based artist Sam Michelle’s still-life paintings of charming domestic scenes embrace a world full of storytelling.
Words: Hande Renshaw | Photography: Suzi Appel
Sam Michelle in her Melbourne studio. Photo: Suzi Appel
‘Still life for me is a world full of characters, gestures and story telling,’ says Sam Michelle. Photo: Suzi Appel
Artist Sam Michelle has been painting and creating art for the last 30 years.
For many of those years, painting was a side passion while she was working in finance. But the lure to follow her artistic passion was strong, and eight years ago Sam turned her part-time passion project into her full-time career.
Art has been a major presence in Sam’s life from a very young age.
‘High school is where my painting picked up and from then I always knew I would be an artist; painting was a precious outlet for me throughout my teenage years and I would often be found in the art room during my lunch breaks and painting on my weekends.’
Today, in her Melbourne studio, Sam paints native flower arrangements in delicate and charming domestic scenes.
As a still-life artist, Sam is inspired by storytellers, designers and object makers.
Her strong admiration for local ceramists and textile designers permeates the household scenes in her paintings, appearing in visual details such as jugs, textiles and fruit bowls.
‘I’m inspired and in awe of many things, particularly designers and makers. Most of all, ceramists provide me with an endless source of inspiration and their work is often the focal point of my paintings.’
‘Still life allows me to be in a constant mode of discovery, collecting ceramics, textiles and flowers to help tell my story,’ says Sam Michelle. Photo: Suzi Appel
‘My paternal and maternal grandparents were all creatives so our stays with them were full of fostering all sorts of making and creating,’ says Sam Michelle. Photo: Suzi Appel
“I try to make enough space in my paintings so that people can see their own story.”
On the easel – painting number two in a series of five, from Sam Michelle’s upcoming exhibition Blink at Gallery Smith in Melbourne. Photo: Suzi Appel
‘I love the versatility of oil paint; I’m still learning new ways to use it. Oil paint allows me to try new techniques without fear of mistakes,’ says Sam Michelle. Photo: Suzi Appel
In her new body of work, part of her upcoming exhibition, Blink, at Gallery Smith in Melbourne, Sam has focused primarily on painting with oil paints - a new direction that has also been a steep learning curve.
‘I love the versatility of oil paint; I’m still learning new ways to use it. Oil paint allows me to try new techniques without fear of mistakes – in previous collections I’ve used the “alla prima” technique, which means wet-on-wet paint and would generally mean the pressure of finishing a painting in one sitting.’
Within Sam’s paintings, storytelling is a major focus; the viewer is drawn into her world, making what’s on the canvas part of their own story.
‘Still life for me is a world full of characters and gestures – my constant goal is to create characters within my paintings, flowers as faces, leaves as arms and stems as legs.’
In store this year is a trip to her hometown in New Zealand, which she has been aching to get back to for over a year.
‘My next collection will be a body of work based on the New Zealand landscape. I’m fascinated by the local architecture and how we perch our beautiful homes in the steepest of hills.’
Sam will spend time driving to her favourite areas, using gouache to create landscape studies.
We can hardly wait to see the magic she will create.
Sam’s upcoming exhibition Blink at Gallerysmith in Melbourne is due to open June 4th to July 10th.
‘With this collection I’ve slightly changed my process and used various colours of translucent under painting which has had to dry before I could really get stuck into the painting,’ shares Sam Michelle. Photo: Suzi Appel