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Answers to some frequently asked questions.
Q. Can you talk about your style and how it came to develop? How do you get the feelings of movement and emotion into your work?
A. "I was trained as a fine artist which is different from a background in illustration, like most commercial artists. I hadn't intended to work commercially. I took an illustration class once to explore that option and the teacher told me to stick to fine art since my work was messy and I couldn't stay within the lines. I was fortunate enough to study with many fine teachers that all contributed different talents. The teacher that influenced me the most was a woman that kept trying to explain how movement in a piece was so important and finally it stuck. I was taught not to "outline" which is why my work has a more loose "painterly" look about it. The style of other artists that I admire is very loose and expressive, though i also appreciate the great skill it takes to render an image "realistically." It's just not my focus. I like to show emotion through brush stroke (if I am oil painting) or through the uncontrollable aspect of watercolor. It's my preference to be able to have the time finish a piece while I am still emotionally connected to it, though if I get stuck (and I do) sometimes I need to leave it for an unknown amount of time until the problem is resolved.
Q. "Do you paint on a regular schedule?"
A. Depends on what is going on in my life. I like lately to work in the later afternoons after I have nothing left to procrastinate with. The light in my studio is wonderfully warm and rich at that time and it's a delight to be in there, especially with some good music and dark chocolate. On a psychological level, the beauty of my new studio sometimes makes it difficult for me to be in there, believe it or not, because it's so pleasurable that I don't let myself have it. Complicated, we humans are. I find that I go through periods where I paint more than others. And always I am especially creative just before my period and during my period. I am usually too spacey to do much else anyhow so I love to take the luxury of just being with my work. I used to tell women that in the painting classes I taught and it seems to be true for many women. Check it out. (whatever you do creatively). I am not the type of painter that paints every day, all day. I find I need to "live life" in order to paint it. If I am oil painting I need a very large block of time to be involved. I never paint at night as I am more of a day person and I always work from natural life though that wasn't the case in my younger days.
Q. What is your preferred medium?
A. I go back and forth between watercolor, oils and collage. I love to oil paint on primed paper even better than canvas at times. It's a smoother look. I find that if I am at all tired I turn to watercolor as it involves less energetically. My oil paintings in the past were very large ( 6 - 7 feet) and took a lot of energy.
Q. Who are some of your favorite artists?
A. Depends on my mood. I used to be very into Egon Schiele, Alice Neel, Soutine, all the expressionists. I like Klimt, Turner's landscapes and I love Bonnard. I could go on and on, but I prefer a "loose expressive hand".
Q. Would Melissa consider donating to my organization?
If you would like to be considered for product donations for fund raising for non-profit organizations, contact Melissa and she will be happy to consider your request.
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