Abstract acrylic painting with splashes of green, pink, yellow, and brown, featuring loose, flowing lines and textures.

Background

Michelle Saleeba is a multidisciplinary artist based in Perth, Western Australia. Her practice centres on painting and drawing inspired by the Australian landscape, shaped by memory, movement, and a deep sense of place. With a background in psychology and art therapy, she brings a reflective, process-driven approach to her work. Michelle has exhibited widely across regional and metropolitan WA, and her paintings are held in private collections throughout Australia.

Alongside her studio practice, Michelle is a psychologist who has over two decades’ experience delivering arts and wellbeing programs in various settings. Her work in this space is guided by the understanding that creative expression can support wellbeing, helping people reflect, connect, and explore their experiences in meaningful ways.

Education

•   Psychology Internship (2 yrs) Psy BA., AHPRA, various clinical settings.

•   Graduate Diploma Psychology, Murdoch University

•  Bachelor Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University

•   Diploma Art Therapy, Centre for Educational & Clinical Art Therapy

•   Certificate IV Visual Art & Design, Studio Ceramics, NM TAFE

•   Professional Certificate Museum Studies, ECU

Selected Exhibitions

2018   MODICUM, Victoria Park Central

2018   Army Art - Transition

2017   EXTRACTS, Victoria Park Central

2016   Beauvine Festival

2016   Mt Lawley Festival

2015 UnchARTed

2015   StARTup - Beaufort Street Festival

2015   Beauvine Festival

2014   RAW Showcase

2013   PSP Logistics, PRSC

2013   Great Southern Art Trail, Philips Brook Gallery

2012   Great Southern Art Trail, Philips Brook Gallery

2011   Great Southern Art Trail, Philips Brook Gallery

2011   Great Southern Art Trail, Mark Blythe Design

2010   Take Me Home, Vancouver Arts Centre, Albany

2010   Perth College Art

2010   Nakuru Hope Foundation, Gadfly Gallery

2010   JESS Exhibition, South of Perth Yacht Club

2009   Mark Blythe Design, Albany

2009   12 x 12 Vancouver Arts Centre

2008   Albany Art Prize

2000   Don Bosco Orphanage Exhibition

2000  ‘Emerging’ - Palladian Industries

Behind the Work


Exhibiting is both a creative milestone and a process in itself. These images offer a glimpse into recent exhibitions and the hands-on moments that lead up to them.

Painting+with+Otis.png
A canvas on a workspace with paint splatters and abstract design, surrounded by jars of paint, brushes, and art supplies.
Michelle with her dog Otis observing her abstract paintings in an art studio.
Group of people viewing Michelle's exhibition of abstract paintings in an art gallery.
A woman with curly hair wearing a blue sweater with white polka dots is looking at colourful abstract paintings in an exhibition of artwork by artist Michelle Saleeba
A woman with blonde hair in a blue jacket carrying a black handbag observing colourful abstract paintings by Michelle Saleeba on white gallery walls.
A man with short, gray hair and glasses wearing a black coat viewing Michelle Saleeba's abstract colourful paintings in an art gallery.
A woman with curly black hair and a dark sweater stands with her arms crossed, contemplating colourful abstract paintings by Michelle Saleeba on a white gallery wall.
People viewing colourful abstract paintings by artist Michelle Saleeba displayed on a white gallery wall.
Person working on abstract watercolour painting with colours intensively blended, black outline, and various art supplies on a cluttered, colourful table.
An artist creates a colourful abstract painting on paper using watercolours and ink, with supplies such as paint bottles, brushes, and a mixing palette scattered around.
An artist's workspace with colorful paints, markers, and a person coloring or drawing on a paper with abstract art and vibrant colors.