Pink Noise: Michelle Thorby

New Zealand Art Guild member Michelle Thorby talks to Katie Robinson from Pink Noise about the Art Guild, family, the development of her career and some interesting reactions to her specialised genre - erotic nudes.

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I was born in 1961 at Putaruru, a small South Waikato town where I grew up and fell in love with all things horsey. I have always been artistic and as a youngster would illustrate various scrapbooks for my fathers racehorses, and my grandmothers scrapbooks too, with different fonts and Thelwell ponies featuring.  I did art at highschool and left half way through sixth form to join the workforce.  I fell madly in love with a local man, went dairy farming for over 20 years with him and we had three children, who are all in their 20's now.

Once the children became more independent I was drawn back to sketching, and enrolled in a 6 lesson course with Art Buzz, at Tauranga.  My tutor was Kate Jones-Madill and I learned the basics of acrylic painting. Hayley Brown made an appearance for one of our lessons which introduced me to her art; and the nudes she was doing at the time made a huge impression on me.  I would go along to different exhibitions and wonder how they would get their paintings to be like they were, but learning of all the layers of paint that Kate would teach us about was wonderful.  I also attended a life drawing class over 6 weeks through Art Buzz which I loved.  Over time I practised painting through the "How to paint this piece" in different artist magazines, giving away most of my attempts to family members. My subjects ranging from beloved horses that I had owned, and dear departed family members.
 
I applied to be an exhibiting artist  at the Tauranga Garden & Art Festival 2004, and was thrilled to be accepted!  I joined up with the Tauranga Society of Artists and was part of their annual group exhibition and sold a painting on both occasions.  At this time living in Tauranga I opened up my studio to the public without great fanfare, just put up a sign outside our drive in the countryside. People came in and purchased my art, and I also got a few commissions which I was very nervous about doing, but the customers were thrilled with the work I did for them.   My painting came to an abrupt halt for 3 years, due to a family member's car accident and being there to help with the recovery and recuperation.
 
We moved back to the Waikato in October 2008 to be closer to our children, and my painting was rekindled and hasn't stopped since. I initially sold my paintings through Trademe, and then was brave enough to make an artpage on Facebook. I was excited when I had just 30 fans ~ but I am now at nearly 500 fans from all over the world!

Through this artpage an overseas magazine SLAM (Support Local Artists and Music) discovered my art, and my paintings were published in their February 2010 issue.  It was a first for me, and a huge thrill.  I developed a website in September 2009, and through both this and Facebook, I sell my art. Sometimes I sell a painting only a few hours after completing it and posting on my facebook page. I also sell art to Australia through this medium.

I joined up with the NZ Art Guild through a suggestion sent to me, and have since had the pleasure of getting to know the wonderful Sophia Elise, a very enthusiastic and encouraging young woman who runs the art guild.  I have been in three group exhibitions with the art guild at the Bruce Mason Centre in Takapuna, Auckland.  I was also accepted into the Original Art Sale at Manukau, Auckland this year, and was the sole artist exhibitor at the recent Auckland Erotica Expo in August 2010.  
 
My favourite things are my family ~ my husband and my three wonderful kids who have grown into happy successful young adults, and of course my lovely first grandchild ~ Liam who is 5 months old, and who always has a smile on his face and an adorable giggle.  

The garden is also a place of joy for me. Painting with plants and scents is a beautifully rewarding pastime. The plants remind me of my grandparents, now gone, but living on in the plants they gave to me.  I'm also a very keen golfer, on a 12 - 13 handicap. Unfortunately golf has been on the sidelines this last year, due to painting non stop; but I really love doing matchplay with my dad as my caddy and mentor. I won 2 silver matchplay championships in a row with dad by my side, and mum hiding in the treelines on her golf cart, not wanting to distract me and thinking I don't know shes there!  

I initially started sketching/drawing nudes, being inspired by a photograph in the "Listener" magazine of a nude woman's torso, which I proceeded to sketch in charcoal. I really enjoyed the creation of light and dark, the look of her torso, and promptly put it into an old frame I had and hung it in the bathroom to the delight of friends and family.  I used my kids watercolours as well one day to paint a nudes, hanging them around the walls of our little bach at Papamoa.  Other subject matter was also created but I also went back to drawing people, their faces and bodies.  I like to portray people as realistically as I can, fussing about with details of faces and hands, not happy for it to be a suggestion of them, it has to look real for me.

I was intrigued by Hayley Brown's art, her nudes that I would see in different exhibitions in Tauranga.  My inspiration has come from various artists such as Salvador Dali, Frida Kahlo, Modigliani and Jack Vettriano. The movies about Frida and Modigliani were wonderfully moving and a major motivational move towards creating my art, expressing yourself through art was a new and exciting journey for me.  I wanted to develop my "own style" of painting, so that someone could recognise my art, like I could with different artists that I was coming to know. I wondered if I ever would... but I feel as if I have achieved that now.
 
My "eureka" moment came when painting my first male nude torso, completing it and being thrilled with the overall result, and the fact that a family friend wanted it hanging on his wall. So began my journey into concentrating on the nude body, female and male. Particularly provocative and sculpted examples of the human body appealed to me, maybe as a result of me always thinking my body was too big??
 
The first time my work was out in the public view, was the Tauranga Garden & Art Festival in 2004.  I had a collection of nudes, and the obligatory flora & fauna paintings. Some of the festival goers walked the other way with a few "tut-tuts" ~ but the majority really enjoyed my art; along with a few giggles and finger pointing, as if they hadnt seen the human body before.  At the Erotica Expo recently, even there I had comments like "Where would we hang this though?", which I found amusing considering they were at the Expo!
 
Sophia and her staff at the NZAG have been so helpful, informative, and encouraging to my new art adventures with them. The art guild site is full of practical advice, and tips on everything connected with the art world, discussion boards, blog links, art competitions and exhibition links, and of the course the opportunity to connect and learn about other artists.
 
I have been part of the group exhibitions for the NZAG North Island members exhibition, the NZ members exhibition and was also part of the collaborative artists project "Bloom" (64 artists involved) with the final painting being auctioned off to raise funds for the Mental Health Foundation.  At the moment I am exhibiting in the NZAG Women's Inner Strength exhibition at BMC, Takapuna during the month of September, and one of my paintings was sold on the opening night to the lovely Carmel McCormack, who is the artist behind the Air NZ body painting television ad campaign.
 
The Art Guild has certainly introduced me to a new and energising direction, so thank you Sophia !!!

 My favourite paintings ~
 
"Frida Kahlo" 

My first attempt at portraiture when I hadnt been painting that long (2004).  I was inspired after seeing the "Frida" movie, and I felt compelled to attempt to paint her portrait, and honour this extremely brave woman who made me laugh and cry.  This was a giant leap forward in the difficulty of the paintings I had been doing.  I really enjoyed the challenge and wondered what on earth I was thinking at times, but I persevered (thankyou mum) and after numerous weeks of doing layers of paint, her clothing came to life. I created shadows and depth, and I was thrilled with how it looked once completed, and happy that people could actually recognise her as Frida!
 
"Rock Your Body"
 
One of my latest "couple" paintings. The new direction that my art has taken me in 2010 has been erotic art, and this has turned a corner to painting couples together; which has proved quite popular.  This is a favourite of mine. It was difficult to do with all the hands, the perspective of the womans face and what you can see of the man's face, the tip of his nose.  I just wish I had painted it on a larger canvas. This painting has received the most feedback from my artpage on Facebook, and at the recent expo, with it being many peoples favourite of my work.
 
"Desire"

A large canvas was needed for the image that I had for this very sculpted muscular full frontal male nude.  This was worked on over a few weeks, with the skin taking ages to paint, due to the large area that it covered on the canvas.  I used my favourite colour, red, to enhance the "hot, sexy and provocative" image of male nudes, that I love painting so much. Its looking gorgeous hanging up  in my bedroom ;)

"Running On Empty"
 
One of only two paintings that I completed over a period of three years was this one, which is actually a reproduction of part of a Dali work that I had seen. It portrayed to me exactly how I was feeling during this time in my life.  A family member had been badly injured in a car/truck accident, and I was pretty much the sole caregiver to her and her son, unfortunately no help was received from other family members.  It was a healing process for me, it enabled me to retreat albeit briefly to paint how I was feeling.
 
"Ode to Heather"
 
A tribute to my mother, Heather, who at the age of 48, had to have emergency heart surgery to replace a leaking heartvalve which had been seriously damaged due to staph infection which had taken up residence at her heart.  Two heart operations in one week, complications and months in hospital, not knowing if mum was going to live or die, was a very painfully sad time for our family.  This painting portrays mum in the positive upbeat manner that she lives her life by, showing off numerous injuries over her life, holding her patched up heart in her hand with a few nuts and bolts holding it together.  They gave her 2 years to live, but 20 years later, mum with her stubborn "never say die" attitude has proved them very wrong.  These qualities of mum have been passed onto her grandchildren, who always remember their grandmothers great determination, patience and perseverance, and positive attitude in all aspects of her life.

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My painting area is in the upstairs mezanine of our home, a small area but nice and cosy. It has a serene outlook to my garden and surrounding countryside, accompanied with the muscial song of the Tuis at times.  An old chest of drawers stuffed full with paints, books, charcoal, and images that I've collected over the years, maybe to paint one day. My seat on wheels that I whizz backwards and forwards on the tiled floor, getting a good look at how my work is coming along; I'm surprised there are no ruts in the tiles yet. Music cds that I love painting to are usually playing on my little stereo. Photos of my grandparents stuck to the wall look over me.  I definitely need to get a bigger studio !!! as I've run out of wall space to hang my art.... one day I tell myself, one day :)

Courtesy of Pink Noise Art Zine #4 / a multi-leveled artist promotional project

Michelle's Pink Noise Listing