Current Artist:

Second Installation

Melanie Dix 

My life in art began as a performing artist. I studied theatre at Northwestern University and went on to be a professional actress for 12 years. Somewhere along the way, I took a painting class, and my love of visual art was born. In my early days of painting, I was greatly inspired by Modigliani, and the possibility of finding beauty in imperfection.

I stopped acting and painting when I had my first child, but I wasn't ready to give up creating. I studied photography and found a new love - nature photography. However, living in an urban environment doesn't make that easy, so recently I've focused my attention on close-up flower photography. I'm an avid gardener, and I absolutely adore flowers, so it makes sense. I love the way that they can be so perfect as a whole but so strange as individual pieces. I try to capture that in my photographs.

I returned to painting in 2013 and have focused on pushing myself out of my comfort zone. The colors I work with are stronger and more vibrant now. My paintings have more texture and layers and layers of paint. I'm experimenting with different tools and have found that plastic spoons and forks, applesauce containers and cookie cutters are just as important as brushes and palette knives.

Thanks for taking time to look at my work.