Michele Byrne Sold at Auction Prices

I prefer to paint outdoors directly on site. I feel that it is the best way to capture the immediacy of the moment. It allows me to immerse myself in the subject. I am not the typical plein air landscape painter in that I enjoy capturing social situations and views of the urban landscape. Whether standing next to a busy café, an isolated beach or inside a jazz club, I know that it is not just the visual information that becomes a part of the painting. The sounds, the smells, the mood and the environment all become integral to the finished image. My plein air paintings are meant to be mirrors of our lives. There is something magical and mystical about standing with your feet firmly planted on the earth, absorbing all the sounds, smells and conversations as well as the visual information and letting it all flow out onto the canvas. I become a part of the scene and the paintings seem to flow out of me.

Michele Byrne paints in oils and watercolors. Two books of her paintings are published and she is working on a third book. The titles of the published books are: The Art of Conversation with an introduction by Constance Battle MD.; The Art of Conversation: Manhattan with an introduction by Meredith Lewis (Editor of American Artist Watercolor Magazine). Michele has also had her works included in sales at Freeman’s Auction House in Philadelphia and she is a nominated member of the Salmagundi Club in NYC, Oil Painters of America and the American Impressionists Society.