Mitey Roche

Mitey Roche (pronounced Mighty, and Roche rhyming with posh) grew up in England, the youngest of five siblings, surrounded by artists and writers. Her late father, poet Paul Roche, was a longtime friend of Bloomsbury painter Duncan Grant, who was like a grandfather to Mitey, and whose world-celebrated work shaped her artistically, especially during her formative years. She was lucky enough to spend hours watching him paint, observing his technique firsthand, and she even worked alongside him in his studio at Charleston (now a museum: the Charleston Trust).

Mitey studied at St. Martin's School of Art (London) and Parson's School of Design (New York), although also enjoyed a second career as a professional actress, earning roles in several BBC Television productions, and also originating the leading role of Dusty in the theatrical production of Party Time, written and directed by Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter.

Leaving the world of acting behind and, after a six-month sojourn in India with her father, Mitey moved to the Mediterranean island of Mallorca, where she set up a studio to paint full-time. She began a series of one-woman exhibitions inspired by India, including shows at Galería C'an Pinós, and several at Sa Tafona Gallery, Deià. Also, L'Art Pour Tous (Cannes, France), and group exhibitions in Tuscany, Italy, at the Florence Biennale, and the Chianciano Art Museum. Summer 2017 will mark her return to Florence, with a one-woman show at the Bong Gallery.

Her paintings are in several private collections, including HRH Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, Sir Richard Branson, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Sir Mick Jagger, and the famous Spanish art collector, Pedro Serra.

She now lives in Gascony, France, with her husband and coterie of animals, surrounded by vineyards in an old stone farmhouse which they have restored.

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