Micki Wilde - Artist of the Month
Saturday, December 1, 2012 at 06:00AM
I met Micki Wilde through Community Thrive. I was immediately drawn to her magical faces she creates and her whimsical style. Micki lives in Leicestershire which is in the heart of England about a 4 hour drive from London. She was born in the same area in a "quiet little chocolate box village", but moved away for a while to live in Liverppool, but decided city living was not for her and moved back to the country to start her family.
You can hear Micki's pride and love for her children in her description of them:
"I have 2 wonderful children a 13 year old son who is incredibly clever and already a few inches taller than me….eeeek!! And an 8 year old daughter who as well as being a math’s whizz is like a little ray of sunshine and has the ability to make everyone smile."
Micki began her work in mixed media in 2007.
"I first started working in mixed media in 2007; in fact that is when I first picked up a paintbrush at all. Before then I had always been a doodler and scribbler but never properly drawn or painted. I was encouraged by my husband and also by a good friend to take up painting and I absolutely love it and can’t now imagine a life without it."
I especially love Micki's girls eyes, they are soft and knowing. Her selection of colors is beautiful as well, very soft and serene. I asked Micki what inspired her to create such magical girls.
"I am fairly certain that my daughter has a huge impact on my creations, it wasn’t until after she was born that I began to paint and pretty much from the first touch of brush to canvas the girl’s appeared.
I also think there is a little girl inside all women, the one that wishes she could still play and run and skip without the world thinking she was crazy, the one that likes to wear odd socks and draw on her arms well a lot of my paintings are the little girl in me, the little girl in all women.
It is true that I also paint older more thoughtful looking girls/ladies and those are the ones that reflect me as I am now, the moody, older but not necessarily wiser, thought filled me."
I can completely relate to children making a huge impact on creativity. I feel the same way about my experiences. I began creating jewelry soon after my son was born and have continued to grow after my daughter entered the picture. I feel that children can help you see that creative side of yourself that you otherwise may be afraid to explore. I love Micki's thoughts about there being a little girl inside of all women. So true!
Believe it or not, Micki has had little formal art training.
"I have no formal art training at all, in fact I was told at high school GCSE level that I was not good enough to ‘do art’.
I am mainly self taught (starting off by buying cheap acrylic paint some awful brushes and letting loose on anything that looked paintable) with the exception of a few online classes some of which I found helpful and some not so."
Unbelievable how someone could say something so critcal and obviously wrong! You hear it time and time again, how famous people were rejected and told they weren't good enough for something that they end up excelling in their life. For example, Walt Disney was fired from one of his jobs for not being creative enough! Well, this kind of negative talk didn't stop Micki from exploring her creative talents. Thanks goodness!
So, where does Micki find her motivation for her lovely creations?
"On a daily basis after taking my daughter to school and walking my dogs I am usually in the mood to paint/draw/create, it doesn’t take much to make me feel creative.
My overall longtime motivation is the people at school that told me I couldn’t ‘do art’ they are always in the back of my mind and I’ve never been one that does as she’s told ;o)"
I too love to walk my dog after the kids go to school and then sit down in my studio to create. There is something so relaxing and inspiring about walking.
Here is a list of Micki's favorite art supplies:
Apart from the ‘wouldn’t be without’ acrylic paint, I am a huge lover of texture and anything that creates it pleasingly to my eye will appear in my paintings.
Some of my all time favourite items to use are:
Vintage and scrapbook papers,
Crackle mediums,
Fiber paste,
Granular gel,
Pens, pencils,
Chipboard pieces
And metal embellishments
But all that being said I can be just as happy using paint, a brush and a scratchy tool with those 3 things alone I can play happily for hours on end.
Who are Micki's favorite artists?
"I change my favourite artists like I change my jeans, very frequently J
I love looking at lots of different types of art though and love spending time lost in a gallery taking a peak into someone else’s take on life through the joy of art.
To me a true artist is those that not only create for their own needs/pleasure but also ooze their magic and inspire others to create too."
I asked Micki where she sees her art going in the future:
"I have no idea and really that is the true joy of my art journey, I’ve had many style changes over the past few years and I’m sure many more will come too, all I know is that as long as I can paint, I will paint :)"
I hope you enjoyed getting to know Micki and her artwork. To find out more about Micki visit her on her blog at The Secret Hermit or visit her Etsy shop. Thanks for joining me on another Artist of the Month post!
"Shine your star." by Madi
Reader Comments (10)
Thank you so much for asking me to do this interview, it was fun!!
No problem Micki, I really enjoyed it!
Micki is the kind of person that makes you feel lucky to know her.....her art always makes you feel something when you look at it....she is a kind heart, a playful soul and a clever mind all rolled into one.
Your interview of her was so enjoyable...and I liked reading a bit about you, as well :)
Thanks so much Cameron! I'm so glad you stopped by and shared more information about Micki.
Lovely and I love Micki's work
Loved reading more about Micki! Thanks for sharing it, I love her work!
I know Micki from Blogland and am the proud owner of 3 of her paintings - lucky me! :) I thoroughly enjoyed this interview, thanks so much for sharing it here.
Jess x
Lucky you Jess! Thanks for stopping by!
I love these pictures! I'm so glad she didn't let a teachers poor judgement stop her from painting!
Her artwork is beautiful, thank you for introducing her to me.