My name is Michelle Oglesby, and I am the artist behind Michelle O Design. I grew up moving throughout the U.S. and Europe as part of a military family, an experience that shaped my sense of place, pattern, and belonging from an early age. After earning my BFA in Sculpture from Winthrop University, I moved to Asheville in 2004, a place that has always felt like home, no matter how far life and marriage have taken my husband and I. We continue to find our way back to the mountains, where I now maintain an active studio practice. My work is rooted primarily in watercolor and gold leaf. It is deeply influenced by pattern, stained glass, and the luminous gold surfaces of Medieval and Renaissance paintings and architecture throughout Europe. I am drawn to bright color, repetition, and ornamentation, using gold line-work to hold fluid washes in place and bring a sense of reverence. My artistic influences include Mary
Cassatt, Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet and the Impressionists, Gustav Klimt, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Georges Braque. I recently stepped into a full-time studio practice, and that shift has allowed my work to fully evolve into what it is today, joyful, layered, and deeply personal. My hope is that each piece offers a moment of pause and beauty, inviting you to slow down and connect with color, light, and bring you a sense of peace and joy.