'Love in Danger' by Michelle McMahan

About the artist:

Michelle McMahan grew up in two cultures: Brazil and the United States. The mixture of the two creates in her a third culture. This cross-cultural vision and sensitivity generate unique and universally appealing artistic expressions.

Michelle’s interest in art emerged early in life. Her parents filled their homes with abstract paintings and sculptures. The pervasive soundscape comprised Bossa Nova, Samba, and Jazz.

After studying dentistry in Brazil, Michelle began a career as a dentist. She has treated impoverished Brazilians, army soldiers in Maryland, and (currently) hundreds of male prisoners in Colorado. Through all this, she has forged a way to convey her love for beauty and art. Her work’s meticulous style reflects a curiosity for the miniscule elements of the natural world. Most people overlook these details, but Michelle brings them to life.

Her work with reclaimed wood and metals developed first in Brazil. There she found amazing beauty in the abandoned wood that in the 1930s had been used to build homes for rugged coffee growers in northern Paraná, a state in southern Brazil. Restoring beauty and design to wood once left to rot is an expression of her ability to see beauty and value in every person.

Michelle’s work was first displayed in 2010 in the gallery of the Architecture and Engineering Club of Londrina, Paraná, where she lived for a decade. Now residing in Colorado Springs, she continues her work with reclaimed, exotic, and domestic hardwoods, creating abstract assemblage pieces. In 2014, Cottonwood Center for the Arts gave her piece titled “Paradox” the Best of Show award. Her solo shows have occurred at the Colorado Springs Fine Art Center Deco Lounge and several times at G44 Gallery. She has also displayed her work in group shows at Kreuser Gallery, Auric Gallery and Cottonwood Center for the Arts. Beyond the galleries, her work is displayed in numerous homes around the US, Europe and Brazil.