STATEMENT
My work explores the fluid boundaries between time, place, reality and memory. I am interested in spaces, both psychological and physical, where the familiar becomes unfamiliar and inner and outer worlds meet. In recent years I have been particularly concerned with the slippery concept of 'home' and exploring domestic space as a locus of the uncanny.
I use a wide variety of technological and traditional methods of making in my work, ranging from 3D computer graphics to embroidery, often taking elements through repeated cycles of digital and analog intervention or remediation. Photography is a foundational aspect of my practice and my thinking, though the final work is often much transformed from its captured origin. I have been particularly interested in bringing aspects of the digital world into the physical, and currently, through collaborations with Generative Adversarial Networks, looking for ways to physically manifest these computer imaginings.
My work explores the fluid boundaries between time, place, reality and memory. I am interested in spaces, both psychological and physical, where the familiar becomes unfamiliar and inner and outer worlds meet. In recent years I have been particularly concerned with the slippery concept of 'home' and exploring domestic space as a locus of the uncanny.
I use a wide variety of technological and traditional methods of making in my work, ranging from 3D computer graphics to embroidery, often taking elements through repeated cycles of digital and analog intervention or remediation. Photography is a foundational aspect of my practice and my thinking, though the final work is often much transformed from its captured origin. I have been particularly interested in bringing aspects of the digital world into the physical, and currently, through collaborations with Generative Adversarial Networks, looking for ways to physically manifest these computer imaginings.
BIO
Michelle Robinson received her Bachelor of Environmental Design in 1991 from Texas A&M University and continued with graduate studies at Texas A&M’s program in Visualization, producing animated short films that were shown at the Walker Art Center, the Dallas Museum of Art, Imagina in Monaco, and The AFI National Video Festival. She has been an artist with Walt Disney Animation Studios for 27 years; she has served as Character Look Development Supervisor for Disney on Ralph Breaks the Internet, as well as the Oscar-winning films, Frozen and Zootopia, and was Head of Characters on Encanto. She has also been a mentor in Disney’s Artist Development Program, taught computer lighting and texturing at the California Institute for the Arts, and served several times as a visiting instructor at Texas A&M University. She was nominated for a VES award for Animated Character on Wreck-It-Ralph and was named an Outstanding Alumni for the College of Architecture, Texas A&M University, in 2013.
Michelle Robinson maintains an active personal studio practice, and her current work is a mix of analog and digital approaches, producing physical pieces that examine the home and the domestic as an uncanny space. She completed her MFA in Visual Art at New Hampshire Institute of Art and exhibited her thesis body of work at the Sharon Arts Center in Peterborough, New Hampshire in 2019. In addition, she has had her work published in The Hand, Diffusion of Light, and Precog Magazine, and exhibited her work in a curated show dealing with the urban environment at the Brand Library in Glendale, CA, as well as solo shows at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, Colorado, and Cecelia Coker Bell Gallery at Coker University in South Carolina.
Michelle Robinson received her Bachelor of Environmental Design in 1991 from Texas A&M University and continued with graduate studies at Texas A&M’s program in Visualization, producing animated short films that were shown at the Walker Art Center, the Dallas Museum of Art, Imagina in Monaco, and The AFI National Video Festival. She has been an artist with Walt Disney Animation Studios for 27 years; she has served as Character Look Development Supervisor for Disney on Ralph Breaks the Internet, as well as the Oscar-winning films, Frozen and Zootopia, and was Head of Characters on Encanto. She has also been a mentor in Disney’s Artist Development Program, taught computer lighting and texturing at the California Institute for the Arts, and served several times as a visiting instructor at Texas A&M University. She was nominated for a VES award for Animated Character on Wreck-It-Ralph and was named an Outstanding Alumni for the College of Architecture, Texas A&M University, in 2013.
Michelle Robinson maintains an active personal studio practice, and her current work is a mix of analog and digital approaches, producing physical pieces that examine the home and the domestic as an uncanny space. She completed her MFA in Visual Art at New Hampshire Institute of Art and exhibited her thesis body of work at the Sharon Arts Center in Peterborough, New Hampshire in 2019. In addition, she has had her work published in The Hand, Diffusion of Light, and Precog Magazine, and exhibited her work in a curated show dealing with the urban environment at the Brand Library in Glendale, CA, as well as solo shows at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, Colorado, and Cecelia Coker Bell Gallery at Coker University in South Carolina.
CV
EDUCATION
2019 MFA Visual Art, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Merit Scholarship
1993 graduate studies in Visualization, Texas A&M University
1991 Bachelor of Environmental Design, Texas A&M University, cum laude, President’s Endowed Scholarship
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2021 You Are (Not) Here, Cecelia Coker Bell Art Gallery, Coker University, SC
You Are (Not) Here, Keystone Art Space Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 You Are (Not) Here, Sharon Arts Center, Peterborough, NH
2018 Transmission, Yavapai College Art Gallery, Prescott, AZ
2017 Transmission, Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, CO.
2015 Transmission, Wright Gallery, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
2012 Employee Gallery, Disney Animation Studios
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS
2022 Dream House (a special publication in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Womanhouse)
Indistinct Chatter, Gallery 825, Los Angeles, CA
Intimacies, MAPSpace, Port Chester, NY
Made in California, Brea Gallery, CA
2021 Landscapes of Material and Mind, A SciArt Exhibition at New York Hall of Science
Horizon 2.0 at Shoebox Projects, LA (online)
2020 In Real Life, Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Culture Of Contamination, December Issue, magazine of SciArt Initiative
2019 “Pixel Rot” (essay), PRECOG volume 5
Tapped 9, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2018 Response: Paired works by TAMU College of Architecture artists and their professors, Reynolds Gallery, TX
On-Site In Sight, Curated by Sherman Finch, Jones Gallery, Houston, TX
Photosynthesis, A. Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Strings Attached, Coastline Art Gallery, Newport Beach, CA
Manmade, Curated by Shannon Currie-Holmes, Brand Library Gallery, Glendale, CA
Sense of Place, Juried by Patricia Miranda, Truro Center For the Arts, Truro, MA
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Chaffey Museum of Art, Ontario, CA, LAX WAX Art Member Show
2016 Little Boxes, Georgetown Arts Center, Georgetown, TX
Places and Spaces, Sugar Mynt Gallery, South Pasadena, CA
Art of Encaustic, Ventura Government Center Gallery, CA
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Photo Encaustic, Sage Gallery, Portland, OR
Round 'em Up, SugarMynt Gallery, South Pasadena, CA
5th Annual Encaustic Exhibition, Morpho Gallery, Chicago, IL
Encaustic, A. Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX
Collective Dissent, Dab Art, Ventura, CA
2015 LAND: Interactions, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
A Show of Hands, A1LabArts, Knoxville, TN
Alternative Processes, Photoplace Gallery, VT, juried by Amy Holmes George
Fusion, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA curated by LAXWAX board
Ode to a Bridge, Art Share-LA, CA, curated by Dale Youngman and Tanner Blackman
FLUX, Chaffey Museum of Art, Ontario, CA, LAX WAX Art Member Show
Another Way of Keeping a Diary, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, juried by David Limrite
Encaustic Open, Buenaventura Gallery, juried by Pamela Smith Hudson
2014 Diffusion: A Matter of Light Annual
Alternative Processes, The Center for Fine Art Photography, CO, juried by Christopher James
Highway 2 - The Journey and the Destination, Modest Fly Gallery, Tujunga and Towns Burr Gallery, Burbank
The Hand, Issue 5
Layered, CAA member juried exhibition, West Gallery. CSUN
The Hand, Issue 7
2013 The Hand, Issue 2
2012 Bits and Pieces, Linus Gallery. Pasadena
2011 Chain Letter, Shoshana Wayne Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
1996 Elastic Light, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
1994 National Gallery of Victoria film festival
IMAGINA special session for student work, Monaco
17th International Film Festival, Creteil, France
Anima Mundi 94, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
AFI National Video Festival, AFI, Hollywood
1993 Vente Exhibition Hall, Fujita Corporation, Tokyo
FISEA 93, Walker Art Center
Dallas Video Festival, Dallas Museum of Art
Images du Futur 93, Montreal
SIGGRAPH small animation theater, Anaheim
Montage 93, The New Images, Rochester, NY
Florida Film Festival
Fort Worth Main Street Arts Festival, Video Arts Competition
CURATORIAL/JUROR PROJECTS
2021 Juror, A Digital Art Salon, and Digital Shorts Film Festival, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, CA
2015 Co-curator, Fusion, Keystone Art Space Gallery
2015- present Juror for emerging artist and project grant award committees for International Encaustic Artists
2014 Juror, Gaming/Computer Graphics/Animation Track, Grace Hopper Celebration
1999 Juror, Sketches and Applications Committee, SIGGRAPH
HONORS
2017 Juror Award, Sense of Place, Truro Center for the Arts
2016 Juror Award, Encaustic, A. Smith Gallery
2016 Juror Award, Photo Encaustic, Sage Gallery
2015 Juror Award, Buenaventura Open Encaustic Competition
2013 Outstanding Alumni, Texas A&M University College of Architecture
2013 VES awards nominee, Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture, Vanellope from Wreck-It Ralph
2012 ArtSlant showcase winner, mixed media
LECTURES, TALKS, AND PANELS
2022 Speaker, The Characters of Encanto, Disney Inspire Days
2022 Speaker, ENDS101, Texas A&M University
2022 Speaker, Hancock College
2022 Artist Talk, Landscapes of Material and Mind
2021 Artist Talk, Cecelia Coker Bell Gallery
2020 Artist Talk, The New School, NY
2017 Artist Talk, Dairy Arts Center, CO
2017 Speaker, SINFO
2016 Panelist, Zootropolis. London ACM Siggraph Chapter
2016 Panelist, Zootopia. Women in Animation
2016 Panelist, Disney Animation Technistas. Mill Valley Film Festival
2016 Speaker, Zoomania. FMX
2016 Speaker, From Armadillo to Zebra: Creating the Diverse Characters and World of “Zootopia.” SIGGRAPH
2014 Panelist, An Evaluation of University Education as it Relates to the VFX, Animation, and Game Industries. SIGGRAPH
2014 Panelist, Frozen: an Evening with the Filmmakers. Women in Animation
2014 Panelist, Other Educational Models, FMX
2014 Presenter, Under the Hat: Walt Disney Studios, FMX
2013 Speaker, Women in STEM Program, Mirman School
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE AND OUTREACH
2008-Present Visualization Industry Partners Advisory Board, Texas A&M University
2020-Present Exhibitions Director, International Encaustic Artists
2019 Co-Lead, Summer Internship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2019 Mentor, New Leadership Mentorship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2019, -11, -09 Mentor, Disney Talent Development Program
2019, -15, -12, -09 Visiting Instructor, Summer Production Course, Texas A&M University
2018 Mentor, Emerging Leadership Mentorship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2015-2020 Treasurer, International Encaustic Artists
2015-2019 Treasurer, LAX WAX Art (Los Angeles Chapter of IEA)
EXPERIENCE
2020- present Head of Characters, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Supervises look development, rigging, simulation, and modeling departments in animation production.
Responsible for timeliness and quality of deliverables within budget to downstream departments. Liaises
with creative direction to ensure artistic standards are met for each character.
2011- 2020 Look Development Supervisor, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Artistic supervision of a team of artists to create the look and groom for characters as determined by the particular aesthetic style of each film. Develop production related R&D initiatives, participate in asset bidding and production scheduling, casting, and resource allocation. Interface with downstream and upstream departments to assure delivery of needed elements.
1995 - 2011 Look Development Artist and Lighting Artist, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Texture painting, shader creation, and hair and fur grooming on characters and environments.
2001-2002 Lecturer, California Institute of the Arts
Graduate level course in lighting and texturing in the Experimental Animation program.
1993-1995 CG Assistant Animator, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Generalist position: building models, animation rigs, setting up materials, and lighting shots.
1991-1993 Instructor of Record, Texas A&M University
ENDS311, black and white darkroom photography.
1990-1991 Teaching Assistant, Texas A&M University
Freshman architecture studio and advanced darkroom photography (zone system).
MEMBERSHIPS
College Art Association
Women's Caucus for the Arts
Textile Arts, LA
Los Angeles Art Association
International Encaustic Artists
Kipaipai Fellows
EDUCATION
2019 MFA Visual Art, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Merit Scholarship
1993 graduate studies in Visualization, Texas A&M University
1991 Bachelor of Environmental Design, Texas A&M University, cum laude, President’s Endowed Scholarship
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2021 You Are (Not) Here, Cecelia Coker Bell Art Gallery, Coker University, SC
You Are (Not) Here, Keystone Art Space Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 You Are (Not) Here, Sharon Arts Center, Peterborough, NH
2018 Transmission, Yavapai College Art Gallery, Prescott, AZ
2017 Transmission, Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, CO.
2015 Transmission, Wright Gallery, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
2012 Employee Gallery, Disney Animation Studios
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS
2022 Dream House (a special publication in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Womanhouse)
Indistinct Chatter, Gallery 825, Los Angeles, CA
Intimacies, MAPSpace, Port Chester, NY
Made in California, Brea Gallery, CA
2021 Landscapes of Material and Mind, A SciArt Exhibition at New York Hall of Science
Horizon 2.0 at Shoebox Projects, LA (online)
2020 In Real Life, Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Culture Of Contamination, December Issue, magazine of SciArt Initiative
2019 “Pixel Rot” (essay), PRECOG volume 5
Tapped 9, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2018 Response: Paired works by TAMU College of Architecture artists and their professors, Reynolds Gallery, TX
On-Site In Sight, Curated by Sherman Finch, Jones Gallery, Houston, TX
Photosynthesis, A. Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Strings Attached, Coastline Art Gallery, Newport Beach, CA
Manmade, Curated by Shannon Currie-Holmes, Brand Library Gallery, Glendale, CA
Sense of Place, Juried by Patricia Miranda, Truro Center For the Arts, Truro, MA
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Chaffey Museum of Art, Ontario, CA, LAX WAX Art Member Show
2016 Little Boxes, Georgetown Arts Center, Georgetown, TX
Places and Spaces, Sugar Mynt Gallery, South Pasadena, CA
Art of Encaustic, Ventura Government Center Gallery, CA
Keystone Art Space group show, Los Angeles, CA
Photo Encaustic, Sage Gallery, Portland, OR
Round 'em Up, SugarMynt Gallery, South Pasadena, CA
5th Annual Encaustic Exhibition, Morpho Gallery, Chicago, IL
Encaustic, A. Smith Gallery, Johnson City, TX
Collective Dissent, Dab Art, Ventura, CA
2015 LAND: Interactions, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
A Show of Hands, A1LabArts, Knoxville, TN
Alternative Processes, Photoplace Gallery, VT, juried by Amy Holmes George
Fusion, Keystone Gallery, Los Angeles, CA curated by LAXWAX board
Ode to a Bridge, Art Share-LA, CA, curated by Dale Youngman and Tanner Blackman
FLUX, Chaffey Museum of Art, Ontario, CA, LAX WAX Art Member Show
Another Way of Keeping a Diary, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, juried by David Limrite
Encaustic Open, Buenaventura Gallery, juried by Pamela Smith Hudson
2014 Diffusion: A Matter of Light Annual
Alternative Processes, The Center for Fine Art Photography, CO, juried by Christopher James
Highway 2 - The Journey and the Destination, Modest Fly Gallery, Tujunga and Towns Burr Gallery, Burbank
The Hand, Issue 5
Layered, CAA member juried exhibition, West Gallery. CSUN
The Hand, Issue 7
2013 The Hand, Issue 2
2012 Bits and Pieces, Linus Gallery. Pasadena
2011 Chain Letter, Shoshana Wayne Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
1996 Elastic Light, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
1994 National Gallery of Victoria film festival
IMAGINA special session for student work, Monaco
17th International Film Festival, Creteil, France
Anima Mundi 94, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
AFI National Video Festival, AFI, Hollywood
1993 Vente Exhibition Hall, Fujita Corporation, Tokyo
FISEA 93, Walker Art Center
Dallas Video Festival, Dallas Museum of Art
Images du Futur 93, Montreal
SIGGRAPH small animation theater, Anaheim
Montage 93, The New Images, Rochester, NY
Florida Film Festival
Fort Worth Main Street Arts Festival, Video Arts Competition
CURATORIAL/JUROR PROJECTS
2021 Juror, A Digital Art Salon, and Digital Shorts Film Festival, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, CA
2015 Co-curator, Fusion, Keystone Art Space Gallery
2015- present Juror for emerging artist and project grant award committees for International Encaustic Artists
2014 Juror, Gaming/Computer Graphics/Animation Track, Grace Hopper Celebration
1999 Juror, Sketches and Applications Committee, SIGGRAPH
HONORS
2017 Juror Award, Sense of Place, Truro Center for the Arts
2016 Juror Award, Encaustic, A. Smith Gallery
2016 Juror Award, Photo Encaustic, Sage Gallery
2015 Juror Award, Buenaventura Open Encaustic Competition
2013 Outstanding Alumni, Texas A&M University College of Architecture
2013 VES awards nominee, Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture, Vanellope from Wreck-It Ralph
2012 ArtSlant showcase winner, mixed media
LECTURES, TALKS, AND PANELS
2022 Speaker, The Characters of Encanto, Disney Inspire Days
2022 Speaker, ENDS101, Texas A&M University
2022 Speaker, Hancock College
2022 Artist Talk, Landscapes of Material and Mind
2021 Artist Talk, Cecelia Coker Bell Gallery
2020 Artist Talk, The New School, NY
2017 Artist Talk, Dairy Arts Center, CO
2017 Speaker, SINFO
2016 Panelist, Zootropolis. London ACM Siggraph Chapter
2016 Panelist, Zootopia. Women in Animation
2016 Panelist, Disney Animation Technistas. Mill Valley Film Festival
2016 Speaker, Zoomania. FMX
2016 Speaker, From Armadillo to Zebra: Creating the Diverse Characters and World of “Zootopia.” SIGGRAPH
2014 Panelist, An Evaluation of University Education as it Relates to the VFX, Animation, and Game Industries. SIGGRAPH
2014 Panelist, Frozen: an Evening with the Filmmakers. Women in Animation
2014 Panelist, Other Educational Models, FMX
2014 Presenter, Under the Hat: Walt Disney Studios, FMX
2013 Speaker, Women in STEM Program, Mirman School
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE AND OUTREACH
2008-Present Visualization Industry Partners Advisory Board, Texas A&M University
2020-Present Exhibitions Director, International Encaustic Artists
2019 Co-Lead, Summer Internship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2019 Mentor, New Leadership Mentorship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2019, -11, -09 Mentor, Disney Talent Development Program
2019, -15, -12, -09 Visiting Instructor, Summer Production Course, Texas A&M University
2018 Mentor, Emerging Leadership Mentorship Program, Disney Animation Studios
2015-2020 Treasurer, International Encaustic Artists
2015-2019 Treasurer, LAX WAX Art (Los Angeles Chapter of IEA)
EXPERIENCE
2020- present Head of Characters, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Supervises look development, rigging, simulation, and modeling departments in animation production.
Responsible for timeliness and quality of deliverables within budget to downstream departments. Liaises
with creative direction to ensure artistic standards are met for each character.
2011- 2020 Look Development Supervisor, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Artistic supervision of a team of artists to create the look and groom for characters as determined by the particular aesthetic style of each film. Develop production related R&D initiatives, participate in asset bidding and production scheduling, casting, and resource allocation. Interface with downstream and upstream departments to assure delivery of needed elements.
1995 - 2011 Look Development Artist and Lighting Artist, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Texture painting, shader creation, and hair and fur grooming on characters and environments.
2001-2002 Lecturer, California Institute of the Arts
Graduate level course in lighting and texturing in the Experimental Animation program.
1993-1995 CG Assistant Animator, Walt Disney Animation Studios
Generalist position: building models, animation rigs, setting up materials, and lighting shots.
1991-1993 Instructor of Record, Texas A&M University
ENDS311, black and white darkroom photography.
1990-1991 Teaching Assistant, Texas A&M University
Freshman architecture studio and advanced darkroom photography (zone system).
MEMBERSHIPS
College Art Association
Women's Caucus for the Arts
Textile Arts, LA
Los Angeles Art Association
International Encaustic Artists
Kipaipai Fellows