Green Building Center is based in my city of Lambertville, NJ, a firm specializing in the most environmentally responsible materials and methods of building and design. Their space at 67 Bridge Street shares an array of these products and the showroom also functions as a place to display the work of local artists. Owner and designer Lia Nielsen came for a studio visit last year and from there we planned a show of my paintings.
“I was drawn to Michelle’s work first due to the subject matter, and then her use of color. Many of her paintings, particularly those of homes and landmarks are local to me, and I love teasing out which roofline might be found where. Secondly, her palette, while often muted and gentle, is lovely and evocative of the small town charm she so effortlessly captures. I have been delighted to host Michelle’s work at our showroom. Good art and good design go hand in hand. Supporting the local arts community is very important to us, and having quality art that melds so beautifully with our space and design aesthetic is a treat. We hope to incorporate Michelle’s artwork into our designs for many years to come, and encourage our clients to do the same.”
The paintings in the exhibition are a mix of canvasses and works on paper, most smaller in scale and painted en plein air. A handful of the paintings date to my time living in Nashville, where I studied the different vantage points offered by our Germantown neighborhood stoop. These paintings became a love letter of sorts to a specific corner where the view was both static and ever-changing. This is the special feeling that landscape paintings give us. I have always liked the idea that we can infer the season or time of day by noticing if the trees have leaves, or if it is the pink purple sky at dusk.
The paintings of Lambertville unfolded similarly. Within weeks of moving here, I became mesmerized by a grouping of houses and trees, this time situated on a fire escape rather than a stoop. Two years later I am still admiring and painting this scene on a regular basis. As I settled in and learned the area, I found my painting spots in other parts of the city. As one walks, one learns the best shapes and colors associated with a given location at a certain time of day. I have tended to the landmarks steeped in history like the shad fishery and the pink Kalmia Club building but I am equally as interested in the places you may walk past and never notice. The most recent works in this show depict Tinicum Park- a big red barn overlooking the Delaware painted on an early summer morning.
The one painting that deviates from this plein air theme is House on Willow Street- a delicate, large painting on paper that is best viewed in person. This painting was based on an old black and white photograph. At one time many of my family members did live on a real Willow Street. This photograph struck me as a house you walk past, thick with plants and a big porch, but you never get to see the inside. It is related to my familiar Willow Street in only an imaginary sense.
The works are available for purchase in person and online by clicking the artwork above. This collection of landscape paintings will remain on view through August 31st. More info about Green Building Center + their hours here
I would like to sincerely like to thank everyone who came to the opening night; a few photos from the evening are below. Film photographs by Don Ross Creative Co.
From the show opening at Green Building Center.
House on Willow Street above a mantle.
Group of landscape paintings depicting Nashville, TN and Manasquan, NJ.
Visitors at the show opening.
