Intro- a day late better than never

The Council
oil on canvas
36 x 36

Hello.

My name is Michelle Jane Fonda-Lee (Yes, Michele Lee like the actress, but with two 'L's AND Jane Fonda like the actress, activist, the BARBARELLA... ella... ella... eh... eh...) I like giraff toys among many other things. I like a lot of things. Especially fun things. And tasty things. Most of all, beautiful things.

Now for "proof" of my usefulness. I made it for my last show. It sums something up I suppose. I don't have the pieces documented yet but when they are returned to me I will document and share. And why will I get them back? Because no one bought them. DAMN IT. In time. Remember kids, there's no shame in making money doing what you love. But there is shame in making money doing what you hate. Or just as bad if not worse, doing what you're indifferent about. Go make yourself useful- be passionate (the rest will follow)


EDUCATION

2005 Yale University, Yale/Norfolk Art Residency (Summer)
2006 School of the Art Institute, Chicago, IL

EXHIBITIONS

2005 Yale Norfolk Gallery, Norfolk, CT
2006 Tulip Gallery, Chicago, IL
2007 Queerfest Midwest, Chicago, IL
2007 Lasso Gallery, Chicago, IL

ARTIST STATEMENT

Painting, creating for me is a way to remember, to relearn, to retrace steps. Not to digress but to progress. Contradictory this may seem but I have discovered a world to tap into and to explore in a place expected to have been left behind. When it comes to emotion, expressing feeling there is much to be relearned after years of being programmed to be otherwise, desensitized and censored of what is deemed for a respectable adult as raw immaturity. But it's my belief that it is necessary and none less desirable as we mature. It's a quality we all once had, and the simplest and most sensible way to regain is by rediscovering innocence. And in painting, both through the process and the painting itself I engage in this dialogue. Imagery and memories from childhood are used to express from very personal to broader issues affecting and encompassing today's world. Every piece is an attempt to approach an issue with an innocent heart from the past along with an experienced mind of today.