Michelle Hartney is an artist, activist, and flower farmer based in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood, where she creates handmade ceramics and grows specialty cut flowers. Her work is grounded in a deep connection to both the land and the materials she uses—everything begins with her hands in either clay or soil.

Working primarily with stoneware, Hartney combines wheel-throwing and hand-building techniques to create both functional objects and sculptural works. Many of her vases are designed with specific blooms in mind, shaped to hold a particular stem or to echo the natural gesture of a plant.

After learning about the floral industry’s impact on climate change, Hartney began merging her love of flowers, art, and activism into a single practice. She grows flowers on her micro-flower farm in Chicago and hydroponically in her basement, offering flower subscriptions to her local community. Through this work, she aims to raise awareness about the flower industry’s carbon footprint, provide ethically grown flowers year-round, and spread beauty as an act of resistance and care.

Hartney’s practice is deeply influenced by the work of Debra Prinzing, founder of the Slow Flowers Movement, and Erin Benzakein, the visionary behind Floret Flower Farm. Prinzing’s commitment to sustainability and advocacy for American flower farmers, alongside Benzakein’s devotion to sharing knowledge about flower farming, have both shaped Hartney’s approach. Their influence resonates strongly within her own mission to connect art, ecology, and activism through the language of flowers.