The Journey Behind the Canvas

Selected Reflections by Michele Downie, Isle of View Arts

Not every painting begins with a plan.

Mine begin with a feeling.An experience. A memory. A question. Sometimes a moment I don’t fully understand until the painting begins to reveal itself.

Rather than approaching the canvas with a fixed outcome, I allow intuition to lead the way. Layers of color, movement, texture, and symbolism emerge over time, often surprising me with where they want to go. Every painting becomes a dialogue between my inner world and the unseen patterns that connect us all.

Throughout my work, you’ll notice elements of sacred geometry. To me, these timeless forms are far more than beautiful shapes. They represent the hidden architecture of life—the balance found throughout nature, the interconnectedness of all living things, and the energy that fl ows through every experience. Even in moments that appear chaotic, sacred geometry reminds us there is an underlying order quietly holding everything together.

While every viewer is invited to discover their own meaning within my paintings, these reflections offer a glimpse into the experiences that inspired three pieces in this collection.

Inherited Light, Chosen Direction

This painting became one of the first pieces I created using those very supplies. As I painted, it felt less like I was beginning something new and more like I was continuing a conversation we had never truly finished.

As the layers evolved, circles and radiating forms naturally emerged, eventually becoming part of the sacred geometry that now weaves throughout much of my work. These patterns remind me that love doesn’t disappear. It expands. It echoes. It continues through the people whose lives it has touched.

I miss my Grammy every day. But every time I paint, I feel her light beside me.

Bertha’s Interdimensional Rave

Some paintings wait patiently for us.

I began this piece while I was in college during a season filled with creativity, curiosity, and discovering who I was becoming.

Every so often, friends would hear about a rave happening somewhere around Pittsburgh through someone who knew one of the DJs. We’d find our way there, and once the music began, everything shifted. The dance floor dissolved. Time disappeared. There was only music, light, movement, vibration, and an incredible feeling of connection.

I always felt most alive in those moments.

Life moved on before this painting was finished, and it quietly waited for decades.

When I returned to it years later, Bertha emerged.

She feels bigger than life. Bigger than time. She isn’t simply a figure within the painting—she is the energy itself. The celebration. The vibration. The joyful force that reminds us what it feels like to become completely immersed in the present moment.