Awesome Artist Spotlight and Interview: Michelle Jones

Theodore

For years, Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net has been about two things only – awesome art and the artists that create it. With that in mind, we thought why not take the first week of the month to showcase these awesome artists even more? Welcome to “Awesome Artist We’ve Found Around The Net.” In this column, we are focusing on one artist and the awesome art that they create, whether they be amateur, up and coming, or well established. The goal is to uncover these artists so even more people become familiar with them. We ask these artists a few questions to see their origins, influences, and more. If you are an awesome artist or know someone that should be featured, feel free to contact me at any time at theodorebond@joblo.com.This month we are very pleased to bring you the awesome art of…

Michelle Jones

Michelle Jones is a Newfoundland and Labrador artist with an insatiable curiosity and a passion for telling stories through art. Whether she’s painting a historic battlefield, sketching from a live model, or experimenting with a new medium, Michelle is always looking for the next creative challenge.

Largely self-taught, Michelle works in acrylic, Pan Pastel, and mixed media, creating everything from heritage landscapes and architectural paintings to an extensive body of figurative work. For more than 20 years, she has exhibited throughout Newfoundland and Labrador, and today her work can be found in both private and public collections across the province and internationally, including France.

Michelle is a member of The Group of 77 Drawing Group in St. John’s, where she regularly participates in life drawing sessions and annual exhibitions. She was also an Official Artist for the 2025 Canada Games, sketching athletes in action, and is part of Artists in Action – The Wildfire Project, a collaborative initiative supporting communities affected by wildfires through art.

When she’s not in the studio, Michelle is one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s biggest champions of the arts. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Arts, Wellness and Heritage Community Site in Portugal Cove–St. Philip’s and loves finding opportunities to celebrate, encourage, and connect local artists.

Above all, Michelle believes the best art comes from curiosity and courage. Whether she’s painting a historic landmark, exploring the human figure, or capturing Newfoundland’s rugged beauty, she’s happiest when she’s creating work that sparks conversation, preserves stories, and encourages people to see the world a little differently.

JOBLO: What got you started as an artist?
MICHELLE: I was always encouraged by my parents to be creative. Sundays was always a day for Aunts and Uncles to visit and have a meal with us and I would gleefully share my latest creation with them or play them a song on the piano. Every now and then an aunt or uncle would “correct” me when I said I wanted to be an artist when I grew up and they would say “No, you should be a doctor or a nurse.” I remember thinking “Who the hell wants to do that? I can’t wait to become an artist!” I’m so glad I followed my heart on that one.

My first real job was at a local country club when I was 15. There was one photographer in particular (the amazingly talented Sheilagh O’Leary) who covered a lot of the weddings that were held on the property and I remember watching her work and thinking how amazing that must be to have a job that let you be creative all of the time! I thought she was the coolest gal around. Again, I couldn’t wait to get older and be able to make a living as an artist. Mr. Davis, the manager of the country club, always encouraged me with my art as well. He loved having me make event posters for the upcoming member’s functions. When I’d finish a poster he would take it and show whoever he could find. As a shy kid, that helped build my confidence more than he ever knew. Thanks, Mr D.

My Dad gave me my first 35mm camera when I was a teenager and I spent all of my money from the country club job on lenses, photography books and film developing. (Photography was an expensive habit in the 80’s) I still have that Nikon FM2 and would never part with it. Photography was my first love. I would sell 8”x10” enlargements of local pics I had taken. I got business cards printed with my name and ICS School of Photography printed underneath. “Specializing in outdoor portraits and scenery” (because I couldn’t afford a flash yet) Anyone remember the ICS Correspondence courses? I did Photography and Interior Design courses through them. I thought I was the bomb having all of these courses under my belt and had my own business set up at the age of 16.

I didn’t start painting until I was 20. Myself and my boyfriend decided we would paint Christmas bulbs and sell them to family and coworkers. The first year we painted almost 500 bulbs. Everyone and their grandmother got one for Christmas that year. 35 years later, I still paint them. Not as many, but I still paint them.

Then in my 30’s I painted my first big piece and made my first reproductions to sell. It was before the age of digital reproduction so a run of offset reproductions cost me almost $3000. There are sill some on the shelf in my dressing room if anyone is interested.

Then it just grew from there. Aside from a one year Commercial Art Course at the local college, I am self taught. I have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. I taught myself how to paint (that is still a work in progress), create silver jewelry from precious metal clay and a host of other artsy things that are too numerous to mention but I enjoyed every hour I spent.

Who were some of your favorite artists growing up?
As a teenager I spent a lot of time in the galleries of our local Arts and Culture Centre taking in exhibits of local Newfoundland artists. Mary Pratt, Christopher Pratt and Gerry Squires were prominent Newfoundland artists that were regularly featured and I would spend hours studying their work. In my teens I started going to the annual print sale at the university. It was there that I was introduced to artists like MC Escher, photographer Ansel Adams, and, of course, Van Gough, Picasso, Seurat, Leonardo and many more. In the 80’s on an island in eastern Canada, that is the only way you’d get to see “the greats”. We didn’t have a lot of Van Gough exhibits blow through the Arts and Culture Centre.

Who do you really dig these days, follow on Instagram?
Since my days hanging out at the Arts and Culture Centre, I have seen the work of many artists that I could only see in books and magazines growing up but, I have to say, most of the ones that inspire me and influence me the most are either from Newfoundland and Labrador or artists that I have met online and that I keep in contact with. I was always fascinated with the work of Mary Pratt and how she captured light in her paintings. For that reason I was equally drawn to the work of Mary’s daughter, Barbara Pratt who also renders light brilliantly. Grant Boland and Clifford George are artists that I have gotten to know over the years and they continue to inspire me.

During Covid, Clifford posted a link to invite me to watch a friend of his paint live. I was instantly intrigued and signed on. The rest is history. Angela Hardy (Website)became known as “Arse Pocket Ang” as I even took her to work with me and listened and watched her paint as she broadcast twice a day from her home studio in Ontario. I learned so much from just observing her paint and see how she used layers and glazes in her work to achieve depth and realism. I was hooked on her work instantly. Her sessions were interactive and we quickly realized that we shared a lot of the same creative passions.

Also, during Covid, I found the work of Gordon Furr (YouTube) online one day as I was scrolling. I commented on how I loved the piece he had posted. As I scrolled through the thread I read his story and was completely blown away by it. Gordon had developed MS and could no longer paint or play the instruments he once loved. After years of struggling with depression from the sudden direction his life headed in, he realized he needed a creative outlet. He had to create again but he wasn’t sure how he could do that. MS had taken his dominant side so he decided to teach himself how to paint with his non-dominant side. He thought a pointallism style might be all that he could achieve so he started to paint by dipping a piece of wire into paint and placing dots on a canvas. He created a piece depicting a female figure that consisted of over 50,000 dots. He did not stop there. He has created hundreds of canvas since that day and his work is incredible! (Not to mention incredibly inspirational!) He said he feels more connected to his creative side now than ever and if by some miracle he could paint with his dominant side again, he would never switch back. I now call him Gordy (because he says that’s what his friends call him), we chat every single day online, and he has been instrumental in helping me grow as an artist. When we first met and we were sharing about our processes and practices, I told him how I spent way too much time creating my art. I sometimes would spend months on a piece and was very apprehensive and nervous that I would ruin it. He told me he was giving me a challenge: I was to paint a canvas black, use just one brush, not wash the brush during the painting, use just black and white paint, find a simple reference like a figurative piece, and just relax and feel my way through it. Move the paint around and not be afraid of it. Use white for the highlights and black for the shadows and move things around until it feels right. AND I only had 24 hours to do it! Everything about that assignment scared the life out of me. I was always one to sketch everything out first then spend most of my time staring at it wondering what to do next. Tentatively adding details until I would nearly drive myself crazy. I figured this challenge would never be completed but I humoured him and started in on my task. To my surprise, as I started to paint and allowed myself to “play’ as I did, everything fell into place. A lightbulb went off that day that I will forever thank Gordy for. In an hour and 10 minutes I was finished and in shock! I sent Gordy a message that I was finished. I think was just as shocked as I was. His response was “LEMESEEEEEEEEEEEE!” Which is still his response when I tell him I’m working on something. He was just as proud as I was and said “See!!! In just over an hour you have a perfectly sellable piece of art!” From that day forward I understand the importance of challenging myself and how much it moves my work forward. That piece hangs in my bedroom as a daily reminder to take on every challenge with an open mind knowing that it will result in growth.

My work has grown exponentially since that day and I have my bud, Gordy to thank for that.

Tony Swaby in the UK is another artist I found online during Covid that would post videos of his charcoal portraits. I would watch and be totally amazed at how he captured such detail without using a lot of detail. That takes a lot of skill and Tony certainly has it. He also taught me how to make my own charcoal for drawing. I’m sure my Dad would be proud to know I’m using his willow tree for good use.

What advice would you have for budding artists today?
Challenge yourself!! ALWAYS!!

That’s when I see the most growth in my work. From that first challenge given to me by my bud, Gordy, I started looking for ways to challenge myself. There is a local life drawing group (The Group of 77) that meets at the Arts and Culture Centre and have been doing it since 1977. It’s a two hour session where we work from live nude models. We do 10 one minute poses, 2 five minute poses, 2 ten minute poses and an hour long pose at the end. The old me would never think it possible to be able to produce quality work in such a short time but now I find myself done before the hour long pose is finished. (now my work hangs in the same galleries I frequented as a kid when we do our annual Group of 77 exhibit) To challenge myself further in this way I became one of the official artists for the 2025 Canada Games and sketched the athletes during their events. That was terrifying and so satisfying all at once.

This year I have signed up for an art battle. We will have just 20 minutes to complete a painting. That’s a next level kind of challenge for me. I have learned that if I’m terrified and excited about something like this then I am on the right track for growth.

Also, create what moves you. Never, never, never, create to satisfy a market. If there is ever a way to be creatively stifled, that would be it. Just be you! Only you can do that and you are doing a fabulous job!

Lastly, surround yourself with creative people! They are your people. Painters, poets, musicians, actors, singers…anyone and everyone that you can find that creates. They will be a constant source of inspiration for you. There is nothing more inspiring that spending the day with a room full of creatives so sign up for every workshop, ideas festival, creative coffee chat, and songwriters circle that you can find and feed off of their energy. It’s the fuel that drives all of us.

What should we be looking out for from you in the future?
I am currently working on a commissioned series with The Trail of the Caribou Research Group. I will be rendering all of the monuments that have been placed along the route of the Newfoundland Regiment in World War 1. The first piece depicting Beaumont-Hamel is complete and a canvas reproduction hangs in the Visitors Center at Beaumont-Hamel in France. Once all of the pieces are finished it will go on a provincial tour of legions and schools. Our goal is to have it seen by as many locals, students, educators and visitors as possible as this is a huge part of our provincial history. Because it is the 110th anniversary of all of these battles, there will be 110 reproductions of each of the renderings and they will be sold to help The Trail of the Caribou Research Group continue their mandate to remember the Newfoundlanders who served during conflicts and peacekeeping and their accomplishments.

I am also working on a book that shares some of the experiences that have shaped me as an artist and a person. My hope is that anyone who reads it will look at things a little differently and maybe gain a new appreciation for the beauty and inspiration all around us. (As we have some fun and share a few laughs along the way.)

Being a fansite, we have to ask you… What are some of your favorite movies/TV shows of all time?
I’m usually a fan of a good psychological thriller before anything. There’s something to be said about a psycho neighbour or a freak with an obsession and in between there are a few classics that you just have to love as well as some quirky ones. So……..

Rear Window, Secret Window. Hush, Momento, Shattered, Beautiful Mind, Unhinged, The Shining, Dexter, You, The Machinist, The Visit, Bates Motel, The Ruins, The Da Vinci Code, The Sixth Sense, The Orphanage, Fracture, Frailty, The Silence of the Lambs, Lust for Life, Seventh Sign, Harry Potter, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Needful Things, Misery, Seven, For a good laugh (these go way back) Duplex, Christmas Vacation, Money Pit, Big Man on Campus, The Secret (Rhonda Byrne) This one was a life changer for me.

Documentaries from Newfoundland filmmaker Kenneth Harvey that have inspired me.
Immaculate Memories: The Uncluttered Worlds of Christopher Pratt, I Heard the Birch Tree Whisper in the Night: Gerald Squires on Creation and Death, It Was All So Wonderful: The Everyday Magic of Mary Pratt, What the Darkness Cannot Extinguish: The Storytelling Madness of Clifford George, The Bear Inside a Whale

Scroll down to check out some of our favorite art pieces from Michelle as we continue to follow her journey across her website (michellejonesart.ca) social media hubs: Instagram / Facebook / Store / Needful Things Market

Beaumont Hamel Caribou

Butterfly

Chris de Burgh

Gord Downie

Horse

Koi

Lupins By Home

Nude Model

Nude Model

Ozzy Osbourne

Portugal Cove

Raven

Raven

Raven & Skull

Silverware With Lace

Skulls

The Trestle