Mique Michelle
Captured by François Mittins
Walls That Unite
In this talk, Mique Michelle reflects on leaving Ottawa to chase walls, cranes, skate parks, and wide-open creative freedom across Northern Ontario and beyond. From Timmins to Sudbury to Port Hope, she shares how being invited to paint massive public spaces without permits or restrictions seduced her away from home.
But beneath the humour and travel stories is a deeper exploration of identity, credibility, and what it means to call yourself an artist.
Mique clarifies the difference between walls that divide and murals that unite, grounding her practice in hip-hop culture, community engagement, and youth empowerment. Through large-scale projects and programs like Couleurs du Nord, she uses spray paint as a tool for education, visibility, and collective storytelling. For her, murals are not decoration. They are dialogue.
At the same time, she confronts the pressure she placed on herself to constantly prove impact. Measuring success by bigger walls, farther travel, hotel keycards, and follower counts left her disconnected from her body and community. Comparing herself to others in the graffiti world made her question her own voice, especially as an artist from West Nipissing carving a path outside major cultural centres.
Through moments of vulnerability, including a child recognizing one of Mique’s mural, she begins redefining success. Not scale. Not virality. Not distance traveled. Instead: breath, balance, local roots, and sustainable practice.
She closes with a public reunion with Ottawa. After years of ghosting the city for “sexier” walls, she’s back. This time with a lease, a gym membership, and a commitment to build depth at home rather than chase validation elsewhere.
miquemichelle.ca
@miquemichelle
