Michelle Turnage Portfolio. 850.287.2766. mturnageartist@gmail.com. @turnage.michelle.89
According To Myself
An immersive art experience by Michelle Turnage.
Artist Statement
My work explores childhood memories, play, and emotional connection. I’m inspired by growing up in rural Arkansas, and I use humor and nostalgia to make pieces that spark joy and invite interaction. I pull from handmade traditions and mix them with bright colors and playful forms. My goal is to create work that feels personal but still relatable—something that reminds people of their own stories. I leave in the imperfections and scribbles because that’s what makes it feel honest and alive. I believe even the smallest, most ordinary things can hold deep meaning. In the end, I want to create art that makes people happy.
Chess
3D printed game pieces
Found object glass game board
2023
Childhood Companions
These are crocheted animals I made to recreate the toy hamock hanging in the corner of my childhood bedroom. These animals with the crocheted hammock along with the window paintings, created the installation Bedroom At Night.
This piece combines a hand-thrown ceramic vessel glazed with soft sky blues and cloud forms, a crocheted sun made from warm yarn, and origami cranes in playful colors. The crocheted sun peeking from the top of the vessel brings to mind lazy afternoons and childhood summers, while the paper cranes add a light, breezy energy. Summer Chill is about warmth, calm, and the quiet magic of small joys.
Summer Chill
Ceramic, textile
2025
Kayla's Rainbow Candy
Ceramic, textile
2025
This cheerful ceramic bowl cradles a colorful, hand-crocheted blanket that bursts with candy-like colors. The blanket was made using a ripple stitch pattern from a needlework book gifted to me by my grandmother. Named after my cousin Kayla, who loves the color green and sweet candies! This piece is about love, laughter, and the cozy magic of growing up together.
Happiness
Ceramic
2024
This joyful ceramic vessel radiates warmth with smiley faces, rainbows, stars, and delicate floral motifs wrapping its rounded form. The playful surface design is inspired by simple childhood doodles and sunny memories, inviting viewers to pause and smile. Happiness celebrates the beauty of small, carefree moments. This vessel also reminds me of the doogles we would scribble in the margins of our papers in a time before drawing tablets and smart phones everywhere.
This was a fun piece to make. I sat at the wheel with a single goal in mind; to create a vessel with a full body and narrow elongated neck. I had made several smaller vessels like this but nothing bigger than 3 pounds of clay. This vessel here was done with 8 pounds of clay. I didn't want the vessel to be too large because I knew I wanted to cover the suface in scribbles with an underglaze pencil. I had to keep in mind my quatity of resources, I only had one pencil to use.
The twist in the neck of the vessel is acually accidental but the moment it happend, I immediatly liked the look of it. I pictured the swirl design of the neck mimicking the chaos of the scribbles.
The story behind this vessel is me walking in to my daughter's room to find a permannet marker drawing on her wall. This made me think of all the times I scribbled on surfaces as a child and this is something most of us have in common, so I wanted to create a vessel to bring back those memories.
Exhibit A
Ceramic
2025
This was also a fun piece to make, however very tedious. To start, the gummy bears were created using a sprig mold which I had to make from a gummy bear bead. Then from that mold, I pressed each gummy bear individually then applied them to the vessel using a very similar technique as the Wedgwood company.
After the bisque fire, each bear, as well as the main form of the vessel, was brush coated with glaze very delicately. After the underglaze was brushed on and dried, I then applied the gloss glaze over the entire vessel.
During my thesis exhibition, I displayed this vessel on the refreshment table with acutal gummy bears inside.
Gummy Vault
Ceramic
2025
Duck Pond
Ceramic
2025
These pieces were so much fun to make. They're all pretty small using no more than 5 pounds of clay. Each vessel features a slip casted duck on the lid and hand formed rings. Several of the ducks on the lids needed manipulation to get in the position I wanted them in. For instance, the duck with his tail feather in the air and his feet exposed had to be hand formed to create those details. The most fun feature is the head of the ducks underwater being shown on the underside of the lid.
Sassy Teapot
Ceramic
2024
This vessel is ond of the few pieces using handbuilding techniques. The body was formed using a slab, the handle and lid were made using tapered coiles. The spout was formed using the pull method then laid out to firm up, then cut in half lenthwise and carved out in the center then put back together to create the hollow section. The black swirls were carved out using sculpting tools and the black underglaze was painted in using a fine tip brush.
This vessel is a functional teapot!
Orb of Thought
Ceramic
2023- 2025
This piece features a handblown glass handle and a wheel thrown ceramic vessel with lid.
Orb of Thought is a vessel with a unique presence in my studio. I had made the ceramimc elements of this piece at the beginning of the year in '24 and the glass orb was created in '23. The two pieces were not joined together until the spring of '25. I was sitting in my studio looking at this vessel, not knowing what to do with it, but I knew I wanted to use it because there was something about the shape and form that really spoke to me. I also knew I wanted to use a glass orb as the handle because I love the relationship between ceramic and glass.
After sitting there, staring at the form, the reflection in the glass orb reminded me of the act of self reflection, and being self aware. This then, reminded me of a story from my childhood pertaining to just that.
When I was very young, 5 or 6, I remember asking my parents "Why are we here?" The question was responded with confusion at first, with my parents saying "Well, we live here." To which I explained, "No, I mean, why are we here on Earth? What is our purpose?" My parents looked at eachother, then to me and my mother said "If you can figure that out, we will all be very rich."
Cherry Tree
Ceramic
2024
Coil-built from dark brown recycled clay, this sculpture captures the rough, natural texture of a cherry tree. It was inspired by a childhood memory of climbing a cherry tree with my brother and eating cherries until we felt sick. Minimal glazing highlights the earthy surface, grounding the piece in both nature and nostalgia.
Yard Full of Sunshine
Ceramic
2024
A bright, cheerful sculpture featuring hand-built ceramic daffodils arranged in a pot, inspired by childhood memories of spring days spent outdoors. The piece celebrates simple joy and the warmth of sunshine that filled my childhood yard.
