About Melissa Walker, The Artist

A love of horses first spurred Melissa’s early interest in drawing. Today she can most often be found creating abstract mixed media collages or painting landscapes in watercolor or pastel. She has recently become interested in creating visual journals, altered books and Artist Trading Cards in addition to her painting.

Melissa’s work is influenced by abstract expressionism and incorporates many mixed media elements. She is a National Board Certified art educator with over 19 years experience teaching elementary, middle, high school and adult students. She received a BS degree in Art Education from East Carolina University and a MA degree in Painting and Printmaking from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. She has continued to study painting with well known artists and instructors Robert Burridge, Bob Rankin, Joe Deguilio, Sterling Edwards, and Jack Shields. Melissa is a member of the Pastel Association of North Carolina and the North Carolina Watercolor Association as well as a long time member of the North Carolina Art Education Association. She recently had 3 artist journal pages published in the book, “1000 Artist Journal Pages”, by Dawn DeVries Sokol. Melissa teaches art at Randleman High School in Randleman, NC and has also offered numerous art workshops to artists and teachers alike. Her students have won numerous awards and she has inspired many to pursue an art career of their own.


Artist Statement

I find the intuitive experimentation and discovery involved in creating abstract art very challenging. I relish the interaction of colors and shapes on a surface, the tension between lights and darks, the blended edge versus the hard line. I often start with a small study done in paint or collage as the basis for my larger works. These studies allow me to try out different compositions and value patterns. Building layers with collage, and adding gestural lines, as well as journaling and stamping are just some of the techniques I currently incorporate into my art. Many times I add thin, transparent glazes of color over pages of text or collage to reveal small bits of detail. My most recent work incorporates circles and swirls. These images are symbolic of my busy and sometimes chaotic life. I also use the cruciform as the basis for many of my compositions. This strong form helps to balance the energy of the swirls. I hope that you, the viewer, will find my paintings as rewarding to look at as I do in painting them.