Melissa Cole
Over the last eighteen years I’ve been delighted to discover that with the most mundane ingredients: acrylic, canvas, concrete, glass, metal, clay, and wood, I can form something that seemingly vibrates with its own raw energy. I relish the moments when my artwork makes people stop their mad hurtle through life to pause, breathe, and enjoy an experience.
Because of my past adventures as a naturalist guide and my marriage to a marine photographer, I’ve been lucky enough to snorkel with whale sharks, stroke baby gray whales and swim with anacondas. It is from these amazing encounters that I derive much of the inspiration for my vividly colored, textured and patterned mixed media paintings and mosaic sculptures. I am also influenced by a childhood spent in India, extensive travels abroad, and by my background in zoology.