Melba sees painting as a visual representation of the poetry living in the figure. Her love for painting flourishes out of a vivid inner world that craves color and searches for meaning and form. Her paintings are an amalgam of her multi-cultural background and experiences. Melba paints at her studio in Harvard, MA and participates at workshops with renowned local artists. Her work has been categorized as neoexpressionism and abstract expressionism.
A native of Guayaquil, Ecuador, Melba developed a strong appreciation for art early in life. But it was not until after she moved to Boston and completed her BAs in Economics, German Language and Literature, and International Relations that Melba started taking art lessons and followed her passion for painting.
After receiving her Master's degree in International Relations from BU, Melba continued her painting journey by taking drawing and sculpting instruction through courses at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education with David Andrus, Eric Bornstein and Shoe Regna. Specially Andrus’ workshop gave her the opportunity to freely explore the vast world of figurative painting.
The turning point in Melba‘s career came the year she wrote her master’s thesis. Melba had moved to Houston to take care of her father who was battling cancer. It was after the loss of her father and when she moved back to Guayaquil to be with her mother, that she found refuge in the art studio/gallery of painters Patricia Matamoros and Antonio Mafaldo. Melba started painting on a daily basis. While exploring the mysteries of color and composition, Melba found her unique voice.
A year later Melba moved back to Boston. Her search for additional instruction led her to take courses with Catherine Kehoe, and Christopher Chippendale at Mass Art. These lessons were very stimulating in color technique, drawing and set up preparation. Chippendale opened the window to the joys and challenges of plain air painting. During this time, Melba worked hard on developing her painting and drawing skills, while parenting her three children and working as a consultant. After an exhaustive search, in 2012 Melba found a studio space in Chelsea, MA.
Her path led to Cynthia Packard, a painter that Melba greatly admires. Melba has been fortunate to participate in many workshops offered by Packard, who constantly reminded her of the importance of the search for the honest inner voice.
In 2016, Melba and her family moved to Harvard, MA, searching for the spiritual and physical space to paint.
Melba has participated in numerous art events and exhibitions. She is represented by Artifact Gallery in NY, where she had a solo show in January of 2017. Other exhibitions include Amsterdam Whitney Gallery (group show, 2017), Art Monaco, Monte Carlo (2016), Spectrum with Artifact Gallery (2016), New York Art Expo, Manhattan (2015 and 2016), Gallery at Spencer Lofts Gallery, Chelsea (group show, 2015), Pearl Street Gallery, Chelsea (group show, 2015), Sprinkler Gallery, Worcester (group show, 2015), BCN Art at Casa Batló Barcelona (2014), Rotterdam International Art Fair (2014), among others.
