Melissa Dunn: Artist Statement

Even though I paint abstractly, content is important to my work. The correlation between a blob of pink and smear of white reminds me of the lady with the poodle I chat with on my morning walk. Exploding blues lines coming out of a right angle is what it feels like as I watch someone spontaneously burst into laughter. And like comfortable silence with an old friend, sometimes a square is just a square.

My painting process combines both intuition and rational ordered structure. But no matter which mode I use to make a mark, my goal is to reflect human nature and find a universal visual story out of my own life experience. Ultimately, the greatest pleasure I derive from painting is when I relinquish my personal visual associations to the viewer. I work with the intention that someone other than myself will be inspired to discover their own emotional landscape and their own relationship to the world. The solitude of painting is rewarded with this potential connection.