Melanie Narish is an artist, doodler, maker, teacher and my wonderful sister. Her talents are boundless. Melanie is the artist behind the watercolor patterns featured so prominently in my new wedding line.
One morning last fall, we were chatting about the direction of my next line. We love colorful patterns, a hot wedding trend, but we wanted to put our own spin on it. At the same moment we had a sisterly meeting of the minds, a flash of brilliance, as we blurted out the same idea. If you have a sister, you know this is a real phenomenon. Anyway, we researched patterns from nature, home renovation and other aspects of our daily lives. Mel painted several gray tone patterns. I narrowed them down to six and dove into the creation of the wedding line.
Melanie’s fern illustration is a crowd favorite. Below is a photo of Mel’s initial watercolor illustration and the final product. Such a fun transformation!
I’m pleased as punch to introduce my sister, Melanie – doodler, maker, teacher, artist. I hope you find her inspiring and uplifting. AngieAllen.com is a reflection of her limitless talents. I can’t thank her enough.
When did you first discover your creative talents?
Playing in the mud. Mud is a sweet (and gritty) medium. Also, I feel like learning origami in 4th grade was my first creative endeavor. I got some books from my grandparent’s house. It was something I started without anyone directing me. No one else I knew was practicing paper folding, so it was my first independent artistic adventure. I still needed help occasionally, and I remember waking Ma up early in the morning to try to interpret a folding move called “sink”. Pfft, sink folds are no biggy now. I was so young.
Altoid Watercolor Tin
What medium(s) do you work in?
I really enjoy tinkering in all sorts of mediums. The experimentation process is one of the most delightful and rewarding stages, and that naturally involves trying out new things. For instance, this weekend I experimented with the wonderful world of Mod Podge and alcohol inks. However, if I had to pick one medium set, I would use plain white paper and black inks.
She works in all mediums: Mel's take on cupcakes!
Please include a piece you are particularly proud of and tell us why:
I did a simple B&W drawing of a girl blowing petals, and her hair twists into a tree truck. I love it because the drawing was easy. It just came out. No forcing. No frustrating little details to tweak. It was just enjoyable. I over think EVERYTHING, so drawings that come out on their own are my favorite, because they are all surprises. That is why I prefer to be a doodler instead of an artist – I will allow myself to draw on a whim.
Has your style evolved over time?
Definitely. I used to solely work from the imagination, but now I am trying to beef up my skill sets overall. I have been working on attaining accurate proportions and widening my illustration subjects. One thing that has stayed constant is my passion for line thicknesses when using ink outlines.
What inspires or motivates you?
Sometimes I will get “the itch” out of nowhere and there is a physical twitching in my fingertips to draw. Whenever I feel artistically stale, I’ll flip through some of my favorite sites to get me jived about drawing again. The internet is heaven for inspirational art, even if you have to sift to find it. Sometimes I will emulate the style I am observing, but most of the time I just get excited by seeing how many different approaches there are to art. Then I want to get my approach out there! Sometimes I just don’t feel inspired, but I need motivation. By blogging I feel more of a responsibility to regularly practice in order to update. Even if no one reads it, my blog is my personal whip to keep trying.
What artists influence you?
Winsor McCay has unbelievable perspective. His art is both outrageously creative and beautifully detailed. Bill Watterson was probably the first artist I admired (and still do). He took light-hearted comic strips and made it a rich, thought-provoking experience (that still made me laugh!). Finally, the first time I was emotionally taken by a piece of art was a statue of a woman’s back by Rodin in 6th grade.
Describe yourself in three words:
Quirky, creative, human
Advice for aspiring artists:
Sometimes it is necessary to put the art down and walk away. I have gotten so frustrated and angry on some projects. When I force it to work, I usually have a meltdown. When I have walked away, the next day I am refreshed and the solution to the frustration is obvious. I have hit walls with mediums and walked away for years to come back later and have a new passion for it. For instance, watercolors were vile and evil to me years ago (anagrams!). I put it down and moved on to other mediums, but just this last year I tried with a fresh new start and now love watercolors!
For more from Mel:
Blog: Melberg Ink
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11784247@N06/
Twitter: @melbergink
A gift from Mel, this origami ball lives on my desk
I'm Angie Allen. I create modern invitations, announcements and note cards with original illustrations. In my spare time, I stalk my family with my Nikon D90 and blog about life, work and photography.
