Canada Day Painting

BIOGRAPHY – MICHELE TARAS My artistic journey began as a photographer. I was an internationally-acclaimed photographer for over twenty-five years, focusing mainly on portraiture and fashion photography. My eye became well trained on how to pose the human figure and translate the fascinating psychology of the human mind into a photograph. I exhibited my photography in Canada, USA, Brazil and Spain, winning acclaim with the top international photography awards IPA in the USA and PX3 in Paris. My photographs were published in illustrious fashion magazines such as Vanity Fair, Elle and Harper’s Bazaar. In 2018, when I turned 50, the need for a new form of expression surfaced. I always longed to paint, but never thought I had the skill. I bought a canvas that sat in an empty room for three months, but once I began to paint, within the first five months I sold ten pieces, was accepted into a gallery juried show and was described by reporter Kitty Huisman as "reminiscent of a young Picasso after he fell into a rainbow." In 2019, I also produced a line of clothing which was shown at Fashion Art Toronto. My models were of all ages, gender determination, body type and ability. It was as much a statement about our lives and who I wanted to see on runways as it was a fashion event. The show was a big hit and afterwards I was invited to show at Vancouver Fashion Week where I received one of the “top 6 looks” by Style Canada.. Everything I do is done with great zest and determination. In 2019, I also founded "North End Art Girls", a women’s arts collective which is meant to support talented female artists from the suburbs of Ontario. My artwork is now held in private collections in Canada, USA, the Caribbean, Middle East and Europe. I am currently represented by ArtMatch. ARTIST STATEMENT Born in Montreal, Michele was nourished by a family of world travelers. Her love of culture intensified while visiting world class museums. Inspiration was punctuated with works by Picasso, Miro, Modigliani and Yayoi Kusama. Her unrelenting love of art coupled with a spirited imagination drove her passion to paint. Her mind, always strongly dichotomous, brings forth work that is playful yet serious, simple yet complex and always vibrant. Michele’s work is a reformatted modernist style all her own. It was that deepening infatuation of the great modern painters that molded her own unique style.