Artist of The Month

Michelle Jeffery - ARTIST STATEMENT

For Michelle Jeffery, painting is an act of indulgent make-believe – a doorway into worlds that feel both familiar and fantastical. Working primarily in acrylics, she creates atmospheric landscapes that could easily belong in a science fiction story: tranquil, luminous environments that invite the viewer to wander, wonder, and lose themselves in the unknown. Michelle’s painting journey began more than 30 years ago when she studied art in Newcastle, completing three years of training and majoring in painting. In those early days her materials were traditional – enamels, oils and the unmistakable scent of turps. Over time, her practice evolved, and she now favours acrylics for their versatility and fast drying time, allowing her to build layers of colour and mood with freedom and immediacy. Inspired by the intricate beauty of the natural world on a microscopic level, Michelle focuses on what she describes as nature’s lighter side. Her paintings offer a sense of calm and quiet intrigue – places where you feel small, as if peering into an enchanted terrain. In these imagined landscapes, detail is softened and fleeting, fading away as though unimportant in the greater scheme of things. What remains is atmosphere: playful, otherworldly, and gently surreal.