Michelle S. Fillmore
ARTIST BIO
Michelle Sweeney-Fillmore is a photorealistic painter based in the Bay Area. She grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, and graduated with a BA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2015.
Fillmore’s paintings are autobiographical metaphors. Having grown up with a family member that wrestled with mental illness, her work opens up a discussion about mental health and points out its inherent stigmas and challenges. She uses a tightly controlled photorealistic style at odds with the turbulent subject matter and its rich emotion. Fillmore also exhibits a mastery with oils by choosing a variety of textures to render in her work. Each painting is a celebration of a person’s ability to liberate themselves from their own prison, as well as the ability to change and transform.
Michelle S. Fillmore exhibits nationally, currently being represented by the SHOH Gallery in Berkeley, California, Artspace Warehouse in Los Angeles, California, and Woodman/Shimko Gallery in Provincetown, Massachusetts.
Solo Exhibitions:
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"Breaking Open: New Paintings by Michelle E. Fillmore," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2022
"Untethered: New Paintings by Michelle E. Fillmore," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2020
​"Halloween Opening Reception Featuring: Michelle E. Fillmore," Adele Gilani Art Gallery, Sausalito, CA, 2019
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Group Exhibitions:
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"The de Young Open 2023", de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA, 2023
"LOVE," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2023
"Renewal," Belvedere Tiburon Library Art Gallery, Tiburon, CA, 2022
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"SF Bay Area Artists for Ukraine," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2022
"SHIFT," Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery, Lafayette, CA, 2021
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"The de Young Open," de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA, 2020
"Group Show," Adele Gilani Art Gallery, Sausalito, CA, 2020
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"Response," Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA, 2020
"Untethered," Adele Gilani Art Gallery, Sausalito, CA, 2020
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"The Art of Quarantine," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley CA, 2020
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"The Summer Hang," SHOH Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2019
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"New Currencies," Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery at the Bank, Lafayette, CA, 2019
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"For the Love of Art," Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery, Lafayette, CA, 2019
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"3rd Annual Small Things," Jennifer Perlmutter Gallery, Lafayette, CA, 2018
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"Extended Play: Vinyl Classics as Works of Art," Art Attack SF, San Francisco, CA, 2017
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Publications:
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"Upcoming Show Preview / SHOH Gallery - Breaking Open," American Art Collector, March 2022 issue
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"The Art Lover’s Guide to Collecting Fine Art: California," American Art Collector, February 2020 issue
"7th Annual Poetry Edition," The Berkeley Times, Aug. 27, 2020