Let’s take a moment to celebrate everything we achieved last year and look ahead to the exciting adventures we’re about to embark on together. As we step into January, let the light in and allow it to wrap us in creativity, joy, love, and possibility.
I have so much in store for you this year, and I’m thrilled to finally start sharing it.
Thank you to everyone one has supported me, by attending my shows collecting my art and commissioning paintings and portraits!
Filling in the Gaps
Commissioned by the London Transport Museum and funded by Arts Council England.
The year kicks off with three solo shows as part of my project Filling in the Gaps, commissioned work by the London Transport Museum. What an incredible way to begin 2026.
Portrait Sue Elsegood, Featured on Channel 4. More about Sue
This work feels more relevant every single day. Public transport is still deeply inaccessible for many people, not only because there isn’t enough of it, but because it’s overcrowded, unreliable, and fragmented into shorter routes. Buses are held in queues or change destinations without warning.
For disabled people, this turns what should be a simple journey into something exhausting, painful, and anxiety-inducing. Getting on and off multiple buses can be physically distressing. For wheelchair users, with only one designated space per bus, imagine a single journey turning into three and the constant uncertainty of whether you’ll even be able to get on the next one.
This project is important because it puts disabled people into the frame, visibly and unapologetically, and honours those who have fought for our human rights and for something as fundamental as accessible public transport. It’s not perfect, but we have to keep pushing. Public transport is also green transport, and accessibility is inseparable from environmental responsibility. I don’t talk about that enough but it matters deeply.
Commissioned by the London Transport Museum and funded by Arts Council England.
FILLING IN THE GAPS, SHARP GALLERY
4 February – 31 March 2026 10am–4pm Artist: Michelle Baharier
Venue: SHARP Gallery, Blue Star House, Stockwell Road, London SW9 9SP
Commission: London Transport Museum Private View: By invitation / booking SHARPgallery@slam.nhs.uk (Anna-Maria Amato, Curator)
Access note: Hospital gallery – advance booking is required.
FILLING IN THE GAPS, ST MARYLEBONE PARISH CHURCH
Opening Night: 4 March | 5.30–8pm
You are invited to the Private View on 4th of March 2026 to celebrate the grand occasion of opening this exhibition I've been working on for 4 years! Come and be my guest!
I’m currently collaborating with a wonderful group of artists in New York through Fountain House Gallery. Over the past year, I’ve taken part in mail art (yes, real art through the post!), exploring shared themes with artists across borders.
Together, we’re developing a body of work around isolation, integration, bliss, and emotional states. This project is still in its infancy, but I’ve begun a new series centred on the bed.
For the past five years, I’ve been photographing abandoned mattresses. Each one feels like it holds the imprint of a life lived. We spend so much of our time in bed, and they absorb our energy, memories, and stories. This evolved into work about my own bed during Covid, imagining the scenarios that unfold there. Alongside this, I’m developing a series about a house falling down and being rebuilt. I hope these works will soon be ready to share with you.
Bethlem Collective Project
I’m also working with the Bethlem Collective, exploring the hospital’s archive. This builds on my performance from February 2025, where the strait dress transformed into a bridge.
My next focus is on patient newsletters and hobbies. The first hobby I’m exploring is basket weaving - a practice historically dismissed and tied to the harmful stereotype of the “basket case.” I want to reclaim and reframe this narrative, working directly with patient newsletters and archival material for an exhibition planned for 2027.
Art Performance by Michelle Baharier at MIMA, Middlesborough Institute of Modern Art, February 2025
City Meets Earth continues until the end of January 2026
A Creations Atelier Exhibition in Little Louie, Elephant Park
Little Louie, 14 Ash Ave, London SE17 1GQ 5 November 2025 - 31 January 2026
In this exhibition, I am showing a piece titled Heart of the City. The photograph was taken during the construction of Elephant Park. In the image, you can see The Shard overshadowing Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, which many people may not realise was once the tallest building in south-east London. Somewhere within this photograph is Little Louie itself, captured before it was built.
Heart of the City – Limited edition of 100, print on canvas, framed – £155 - View my video
Alongside Heart of the City, I am also showing a black-and-white photograph of St Paul’s Cathedral, taken from across the river. When photographing London, I am always drawn to moments where nature and city meet. Cities are full of nature, yet it is frequently overlooked, hidden in plain sight. St. Paul's Cathedral, London – Limited edition of 100, print on canvas, framed – £255
As we begin this new year, I’m open for commissions. If you’d like to work with me, whether on a personal, public, or collaborative project, I’d love to hear from you.
January is a perfect time to start conversations and plant seeds for future work.
With my photo collage 'Sink', which was exhibited at ING Discerning Eye 2025
Please get in touch to discuss ideas, timelines, and possibilities.
