I was born and raised in the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis Minnesota, and grew up with a view of the State Capitaland St. Paul Cathedral from my backyard. My parents made sure I was exposed to the various arts Minnesota has to offer and I have always loved the Minneapolis Institute of Art and The Walker. I also enjoy going to our local theatres and music venues. I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the College of Visual Arts in May of 1997. Since then, I have been working from my studio in Lowertown St. Paul.  I recently moved my studio into a smaller space within the same building, enabling my continued commute from my home to the "cities".   I do have a day job:Supervising a before school and Pre-K/Kindergarten school age care program in Taylors Falls. I love working with kids and have been doing so for the past 19 years. (I have also taught Art classes for various Community Education programs as well as serving as a member of the Arts Council of North St. Paul.) I live near Taylors Falls, in a home that I  share with my husband, daughter, our dog,  3 fainting goats and   chickens round out our little ranch.... (they provide us with quite a bit of entertainment and also provide us with eggs!) My family encourages, inspires and teaches me new lessons daily. They drive me to be who I am. My surroundings and community have been very inspiring- it is a wonderful place to be.  This place I now live, a place that used to be a "get-away" for many Minnesotans, is my home.  I am so very grateful.

Up Coming Exhibitions/Showings (Also see Events Page...) Past Exhibitions: 2010 CVA Alumni Show Best Foot Forward, St. Paul MN 2010 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl 2010 Foot in the Door 4 at MIA, Minneapolis,MN 2009 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl 2009 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl 2008 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl 2008 St. John's Hospital (August), Maplewood MN 2008 CVA Alumni Exhibition (June), St. Paul MN 2008 Spring Art-A Whirl , NE Mpls MN 2008 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl 2007 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl 2007 "Small Wonder" CVA Alumni Show, St. Paul MN 2007 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl 2006 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl 2006 JAX Group Artists Show, NSP City Hall, North St. Paul, MN 2006 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl, St. Paul MN 2005 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl, St. Paul, MN 2005 CVA Juried Biennial Alumni Exhibit, St. Paul,MN 2005 Annual North St. Paul Art Exhibition @ City Hall, N. St. Paul, MN 2005 St. Paul Mayor's Office, St. Paul, MN 2005 "Art on the Street", North St. Paul, MN 2005 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl, St. Paul MN 2005 Metropolitan Council Offices, St. Paul MN 2005 JAX #1 Group Show,4th St. Theatre, St. Paul MN 2004 The 11th Hour; St. Paul, MN 2004 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl; St. Paul, MN 2004 11th Annual Art Exhibit(@ City Hall); N.St. Paul, MN 2004 "Salon 500" Hopkins Center for the Arts; Hopkins MN 2004 Hot Summer Jazz Festival/ Visual Jazz; St. Paul,MN 2004 Spring St. Paul Art Crawl; St. Paul, MN 2003 Fall St. Paul Art Crawl; St. Paul, MN 2000 "Flesh" CVA Gallery; St. Paul, MN Recent Commissions: 2008 Greene Family Portrait, Lindstrom,  MN 2008  NSP Sno Frolics Button, North St. Paul, MN 2007 Jewelry Sets for Mrs. Simmons, Shafer,MN 2007 NSP Sno Frolics Button, North St. Paul, MN 2006 Card sets (for 2 Private Parties) In Chisago County, MN 2006 Scenic Painting for Mahtomedi MS Theatre Production,          Mahtomedi, MN 2005 Acrylic Painting, As Gift, For Ms. R. Weldon, Maplewood, MN 2005 Lino Block Card Set, For Ms. Sapp, N. St. Paul, MN 2004 T-Shirt design, Weaver Music Dept.,Maplewood,MN 2004 Multicultural Banner, Weaver Elementary,Maplewood,MN 2003 Horse Portrait, Mr. & Mrs. Scott Muellner, Scandia,MN Other : *2008-present ISD #2144 Community Ed. Enrichment Art Instructor *2008-2009Featured Artist of Episode #310 of SPNN Lowertown Artists Series *One of 10 Media Finalists for the Spring 2006 St. Paul Art crawl poster competition * 1 of Approx. 15 artists chosen to represent Local St. Paul Artists at "St. Paul Illustrated" Magazine Launch party. *One of 10 Media Finalists for the Fall 2005 St. Paul Art Crawl poster competition. *Fall 2003-2006, Community Ed. Instructor, ISD 622 Acrylics *1996-1999 Art Enrichment Instructor, NW YMCA, Shoreview MN *1994-1999 Summer Art Specialist, NW YMCA, Shoreview,MN  Organizations: Member of The Saint Paul Art Collective, Member MN Artists.org. All images and text; Copyright 2003-2010 Michelle Dietz