February is for love, powerful portraits, and exhibitions you won’t want to miss.
Not forgetting Valentine treats, two solo shows, cushions, activism & turquoise seas…
Welcome to February – the month of passion, love, and a little bit of magic...
Are you ready?
First things first… I hope you’re keeping warm. And seriously — where did January go? One minute we were saying Happy New Year, the next we’re already talking Valentine’s cards and spring exhibitions.
So grab a cuppa (or a cushion — more on that later 😉) and settle in.
❤️Love, Hearts & a Little Valentine Magic
Love is.... whatever you need it to be
How do you show love?
For me, love turns up in paint, words, texture — and yes, sometimes in hearts. I’ve created Valentine’s cards this year, not just with painted hearts, but also with words… phrases like “Love is…” — open-ended, hopeful, and yours to finish.
Newsletter exclusive: I have a little something special just for you. A free digital Valentine's Day Card 'Love is...'
Just for my newsletter readers, get your free Canva template so you can add your own text to the this digital greeting card, download it and send it to someone special. Show it off on Facebook or Instagram and tag me, please.
How? Just open the card on Canva and swap the placeholder text with your own message!
Perfect for hugs, sofas, beds, or creative daydreaming. If you need a cushion (or a cup of something warming ☕), just get in touch.
Art you can hug. 10% off for newsletter readers this February.
💌 Newsletter readers get 10% off cushions throughout February.
Love Beyond Romance. Not all love is the romantic kind.
What about the love we share with friends? Family? Community? And what about compassion — for people we may never meet, but whose lives shape our world?
This brings me to my digital collage The Heart of the City.
The Heart of the City — now sold. Thank you to a wonderful new collector.
Now SOLD at City Meets Earth. Thank you so much, and welcome to the new collector who has joined me on my artistic journey. It is always an honour when someone buys my work because they’re taking home a piece of you.
Exhibitions & Solo Shows
I’m thrilled to share that the next few months are busy and I’d love to see you at my upcoming shows.
SOLO SHOW 1: Filling in the Gaps (Prints) at Sharp Gallery
Why shouldn’t people in hospital see powerful, meaningful art?
This unique exhibition takes place in a hospital gallery setting and brings the living room into the hospital. The work focuses on the lives of Disabled activists, the people who have made lasting changes that benefit us all. It showcases the portrait prints displayed publicly together for the first time.
Venue: SHARP Gallery Blue Star House, Stockwell Road, London SW9 9SP
🗓 Opens: 4 February ⏳ On show for two months
This body of work is part of my long-term project Filling in the Gaps, commissioned by the London Transport Museum and funded by Arts Council England.
Katherine Araniello – performance artist and activist, founder of the Campaign for Accessible Transport.
My Great Auntie Ettie (Esther Annenberg) – lifelong disability activist, campaigner for DialaRide in the 1980s, and owner of the immortal words: “Never let the bastards get you down.” She lived to 111.
A portrait of David Morris who was the advisor to the mayor of London, before his untimely death in 2010. Inspired by his poem Route Master Race, which sparked this entire project.
📅 May–June (dates to be confirmed) 📍 Tramshed, 51–53 Woolwich New Road, London SE18 6ES
Group Exhibitions
Sisterhood, South London Women Artists
Celebrating International Women’s Day with our sisters.
Private View: 2 March
Lambeth Archives, 16 Brixton Hill, London SW2 1ET Open daily
Dulwich Festival Artist Open House
BT Tower Digital Collage, Sold at Sprout, December 2025. Original Prints Available
Showing with Creations Atelier in Herne Hill, alongside artists Natalia Giacomino, Paola Minekov and Mark Coster.
Flat A, 12 Berwyn Road, London, England, SE24 9BD
I'm also showing with SLWA at East Dulwich Picturehouse
🗓Both venues will be open the weekends: 9–10 May & 16–17 May
Workshops
16 March Sprout gallery
May–June (dates to be confirmed) 📍 Tramshed, 51–53 Woolwich New Road, London SE18 6ES
How Long Does a Portrait Take?
Ah, the eternal question. How long is a piece of string?
People want things quickly (don’t we all?), but painting is a conversation, it is a collaboration, and time matters.
I paint people who interest me: activists, loved ones, individuals with powerful stories. Many of the portraits you’ll see in Filling in the Gaps are of disabled activists who fought to make public transport accessible, benefiting parents with buggies, people with shopping trolleys, those with temporary injuries… everyone.
Painting is a historic act. Kings, queens, generals — they’re painted, not just photographed. Yet Disabled people remain largely invisible in our museums and collections. My work is about changing that.
My Process
Acrylic paint (like David Hockney)
Heavy body acrylics for vibrancy and depth
Knives, rollers, stencils, fingers, brushes and even pens
No fumes (important as I live with COPD)
When I paint, the world disappears — it’s total focus.
Commissioning a Portrait
What if I came and painted you?
You might say:
“Hi Michelle — I’d love you to paint me / my cat / my dog / my horse / my motorbike / my house…”
Portraits are collaborative. I visit your space where possible. Your environment adds time, story, and intimacy to the work.
🗓 Commissions reopen in April
Allow at least 12 weeks for A3 or smaller (larger works take longer)
Prices start from £800, depending on size and time
For perspective: my portrait of Baroness Tanni GreyThompson took around 20 days of work.
A Little Blue (the Good Kind)
I was lucky enough to visit Thailand, escaping some winter blues.
Why is blue associated with sadness? Blue skies. Blue seas. Turquoise water. They make me happy.
I’ll leave you with a poem.
💙In the Blue
It’s Blue Monday. It’s blue. January. But… Skies are blue And the sea is too.
Blue makes me happy — What about you?
Especially the turquoise variety, Alongside sunshine and beaches, Where yellow and blue stick out and shine.
Blue skies and blue seas — What could be better?
Why is blue linked to bad moods? Blue moons and surprises… Who decides such rubbish?
It wasn’t me.
Turquoise blue is one of my favourite colours. So difficult to paint, to imitate — Better to sit on the beach and see.
Bluebells welcome the spring. Blue skies and seas make me happy.
