Insert Your Name Here

 

Insert Your Name Here (60cm x60cm)

Filed under: Arts & Culture, artist, michelle macnamara, michelle tatnell, MichelleMarieMacnamara, paintings

The Death of the Apple Tree

 

Death of the Apple Tree (60cm x 60cm)

Filed under: Arts & Culture, artist, death of the apple tree, eat more greens, MichelleMarieMacnamara, paintings

John Moores Contemporary Painting Prize

‘Devolution’ was painted in February 2010, specifically for entry to the John Moores Contemporary Painting Prize. It is part of a collection of works called ‘The Blue Series’ where I explore the nature of Man’s relationship with himself as a spiritual being, compared his egotistical side, with all his maniacal actions and desires and whether these pathological needs, fed by society norms and inbred sources of media, are destroying our path towards spiritual evolution. Or is man destined to regress to his bestial tendencies and form, using primitive language as a form of communication, focusing prejudice and intolerance on others. Waging personal or global wars on those different than him, or in discordance with his beliefs.

'Devolution' Oil on Canvas 122 X 152cm

The ‘modern condition’ is all to apparent in these works. They depict the physical devolution of man, through the misrepresentation of mythological creatures. This reality is dark and cumbersome, some are pushed and pulled into the plasticity of mass consumption, while others morph into one another, having given up on individual thought long ago. Some are on the edge, being given a choice to learn and create for themselves. The choice to think outside their boxes, to not ignore the propaganda but to question it. The choice to turn off their televisions and pick up a book. The choice to open their eyes and see the world as it really is, not how they are told it is.

Filed under: Arts & Culture, Uncategorized, contemporary art prize, devolution, imagery, john moores, john moores painting prize, liverpool, liverpool john moores, michelle macnamara, michelle tatnell, MichelleMarieMacnamara, paintings, the blue series

The Girl. The Woman. The Whore.

This is one of my paintings from a Solo Exhibition, held last year in Melbourne.

The Exhibition title was “The Girl.The Woman.The Whore” and was based on a very dark period of my life.

I am built, as everybody is, on my life experience and the way in which I choose to handle, what is thrown in my direction. These experiences and people that come into our lives are what moulds us and begins to define us.

from Jo Salt’s review of the show:

“The catalyst for the exhibition ‘The Girl, the Woman, the Whore’ centers around Michelle Marie becoming privy to a dark and jarring component of the life of someone close to her, and the plethora of emotions that followed.

The experience provoked in the artist feelings of repulsion and rejection, while simultaneously forcing her to attempt to identify with the previously undisclosed actions, as well as understand the affinity that existed between herself and the woman in question.

As a result, she was struck with the powerful impact the fundamental choices we make can have (commonly and casually referred to as ‘life choices’) and their resonating effect.

Through her paintings Michelle Marie creates a seduced reality, capturing emotional states and investigating the nuances found in the freedoms and constrictions of love, life and sexuality. Bold color and imagery allude to a dramatic confidence, accentuating the desire one has to be comfortable within her own skin.

Michelle Marie explores colors and shapes in a way that echoes the manner in which she desires to explore the world; continuously searching for and craving new imagery, the blocks of empty space meeting jungle-like patterns of color symbolizing the journey and its often complex rewards.
Michelle Marie says of her work:
“This may sound clichéd but I need to be able to express myself through my paintings, as I find it difficult to concisely articulate what I think or feel. I would love to have the ability to project myself in the world as politically or theoretically motivated but at the end of the day my work is very subjective and self-involved.

I am compelled to make these self/life-portraits which relate to my immediate environment and experiences. The work itself connects me to something tangible, reminding me that I am here and real and a part of this world.”

Filed under: Arts & Culture, artist, color, imagery, life experience, melbourne, MichelleMarieMacnamara, paintings, press release, shape, solo exhibition, wall murals

It’s Untitled for a Reason

Untitled IV, 2008. Oil on Canvas

Filed under: Arts & Culture, Words & Rants, artist, color, MichelleMarieMacnamara, paintings, untitled