About Michelle Philip

Are These Originals or Giclées?

Most pieces here are digital art giclées—fine-art prints made with archival pigment inks on museum-quality paper or canvas. They capture remarkable detail and color, with a lifespan measured in generations. Even experienced eyes often have trouble distinguishing a well-made giclée from an original.

These works begin as digital paintings, created entirely on screen using a Wacom Cintiq stylus and software that mimics traditional media—oils, watercolors, pastels, and more. I start with AI for references and quick compositional iterations, a modern way to explore “what if” ideas that push beyond my usual boundaries. From there, I take over completely: hours of painting, refining light, texture, and feeling until the piece feels resolved. The human decisions shape the final image. It’s then printed in limited editions of 25, mounted, framed, and varnished by hand. Each comes with a signed and numbered Certificate of Authenticity.

I see AI much like a camera or preliminary sketch—useful for sparking possibilities, but never the author. The vision, the craft, and the physical finish remain mine, built on decades of traditional practice I still love and pursue in oils on canvas.

If you prefer originals, I have many oil paintings available and keep adding new ones at the easel. Feel free to reach out for a studio visit or to discuss custom work. I’m glad to answer any questions.

Michelle Philip, Artist

Phone / text: (303) 522-3048

Studio address: 5485 Conestoga Court, Suite 101, Boulder

MICHELLE PHILIP

As the founder of the Classical Art Academy, I was granted the quiet honor of not only crafting my own works, but also guiding hundreds of eager souls through the subtle arts of the old masters. For 20 years, I shared the fundamentals - drawing, painting, anatomy, perspective, color theory, and composition, watching as students uncovered the timeless rhythms that bind brush to canvas. Retired from teaching, I am finding delight in weaving modern tools into my practice, opening doors to unforeseen expressions of the imagination.

My aspiration as an artist remains modest: to fashion pieces that kindle emotion, perhaps stirring some half-forgotten whisper of memory or feeling within the viewer. I am drawn to portray the ways in which people across the globe fashion their homes and villages into havens of charm - simple abodes that speak of human resilience and grace. Angels, too, hold a special place in my repertoire, alongside the quiet nobility of animals and the beauty of landscapes, each evoking a sense of the sacred amid the everyday.

In technique, I embrace a blend of oil, acrylic, digital painting, gold leaf, and watercolor. My classical training grounds my work with an anchor that permits playful ventures into abstraction and pattern whilst keeping one foot in realism. There is no fleeing that disciplined heritage; it undergirds all, allowing whatever medium proves fitting to coax an inner vision into tangible form, ready to grace a wall.

I welcome visitors to my Boulder studio to have a look around and see what I am working on. Artwork in the "Inquire" collection can be seen at the studio. To schedule a visit, just send me a text at 303-522-3048.

- If you don’t like the frame, I will gladly remove it and give you a $75 credit/refund. Just contact me at 303-522-3048 to make an appointment to bring the painting to my studio at 5485 Conestoga Court, Boulder, Suite 101.

-I do offer shipping if needed. I charge $25 flat fee to pack and deliver the art to the shipping company, plus the actual cost of the box and the postage (with no markup.)

-After purchase, If you want a Certificate of Authenticity, please send me an email or text with your name and contact information. My email is ClassicalArtAcademy@gmail.com, my phone number is 303-522-3048.

About

Artist Statement