about Michelle...
Michelle Anne Morrissey is a veteran art teacher specializing in media arts and design technology. She has exhibited in numerous group and solo shows over the past 20+ years including annual summer art festivals. She prefers to work in assemblage and mixed media incorporating her box constructions, photography, and found objects collected from her many travels.
ART CREATION
The nostalgia in found objects and the mystery behind their history is what has always inspired my art. My current suite of assemblage boxes, start with an image of an iconic individual. This single image, whether found, photographed or drawn steers the gathering of other found objects around the image. Some objects compliment, some juxtapose, but all define the interconnectedness of their symbolism. I explore many methods and media to obtain a creative outcome. Curiosity and reminiscence are my primary goals in both the creation and final work of art.
The ‘drifter’ collection of beach glass jewelry and driftwood mobiles was inspired by years of combing the shores of Lake Erie. Each piece is unique in its shape and energy tumbled by the waves. I simply find each fractured bit of glass, ceramic and wood in tucked away coves and cliff side bays that I reach by kayak, away from the hustle of populated beaches, and drill or mount them into pendulous objets d’art.
All that I create is a form of reclaiming, recycling and repurposing weathered and worn material. But I’d like to think my work is more like a re-gifting of lost or expired stuff back to the earthly cycle.
The nostalgia in found objects and the mystery behind their history is what has always inspired my art. My current suite of assemblage boxes, start with an image of an iconic individual. This single image, whether found, photographed or drawn steers the gathering of other found objects around the image. Some objects compliment, some juxtapose, but all define the interconnectedness of their symbolism. I explore many methods and media to obtain a creative outcome. Curiosity and reminiscence are my primary goals in both the creation and final work of art.
The ‘drifter’ collection of beach glass jewelry and driftwood mobiles was inspired by years of combing the shores of Lake Erie. Each piece is unique in its shape and energy tumbled by the waves. I simply find each fractured bit of glass, ceramic and wood in tucked away coves and cliff side bays that I reach by kayak, away from the hustle of populated beaches, and drill or mount them into pendulous objets d’art.
All that I create is a form of reclaiming, recycling and repurposing weathered and worn material. But I’d like to think my work is more like a re-gifting of lost or expired stuff back to the earthly cycle.
TEACHING PHILOSOPHY (excerpt)
Perception
I aspire to teach my students to think about what they see and emphasize the importance of effort and self-discipline as essentials of the learning process. Through systematic and diligent work a student can learn to observe and, in time, scrutinize any perceptual challenge.
Relevance
The process of making, experiencing, and understanding art is closely tied to our personal and social knowledge. Art practice is not only a part of art history, but also of our collective human experience. By focusing on broad ideas about cultural history, technology, film, poetry, I encourage students to see visual art practice as part of a larger framework.
Perception
I aspire to teach my students to think about what they see and emphasize the importance of effort and self-discipline as essentials of the learning process. Through systematic and diligent work a student can learn to observe and, in time, scrutinize any perceptual challenge.
Relevance
The process of making, experiencing, and understanding art is closely tied to our personal and social knowledge. Art practice is not only a part of art history, but also of our collective human experience. By focusing on broad ideas about cultural history, technology, film, poetry, I encourage students to see visual art practice as part of a larger framework.