Mel Dewees
Creating art is an essence, way of being. Since early childhood art was an escape from a troubling and humbling life. Through the loss of my parents, I came face to face with a world that was unforgiving and full of hardship. Within art I found a presence with which I could establish my voice. After numerous figure study classes, I found that drawing was pivotal for me as an artist to obtain my own sense of reason. The line became my visual voice. My paintings tend have a light backgrounds to encourage an association with sketchbooks. I like the idea of having a flat plane on which to work. This treatment of the painting as a sketch allows the line to play a pivotal role within the work. By thinking of my work as more of a sketch than a painting, I can view the body of work as a spontaneous visual diary.