Melinda English

Art Brokerage: Melinda English American Artist: Born in New Orleans into an Acadian French family, Melinda has experienced a uniquely rich culture of the South. She holds a strong Catholic heritage which creates a love for religious art from an early age. Her bachelor degree background is in Cultural Anthropology and Psychology from Our Lady of the Lake University. Ever-learning how culture and art are related, she began to experiment with narrative and interpretive portraiture. Landscapes and still life are also among her portfolio of paintings, and photography.Her method of painting is a true form of Cultural Expressionism with an aim in art to convey the multi-layered meanings, symbolism and metaphoric association that involve themes of human social structures, allowing viewer consciousness to become more heightened. She combines the many cultures experienced firsthand in worldly travels. Many paintings arise from personal photographic images taken over the many years in her quest for visual exploration within selected cultural studies. Within her art form, she seeks emotional tension that is an underlying interaction within her historical references. These are then interwoven into frank portrayals of human drama with subtle yet complex visual narrative perspectives. The artists she most admires include Gauguin, Cezanne, Rousseau, and O'Keeffe. She strongly feels that the seductive flavor and boldly colored themes of Gauguin's Tahitian paintings inspired not only the world we live in, but the diverse cultures that came before us. She believes deeply that art is medicine so powerful that it can revitalize the human spirit, promote self-esteem and give a joyful purpose in life. Such artistic expression allows complexity in and of cultures to the surface in order to share with others. Listings wanted.