MH 004 Painting

Melissa Herrington creates mixed media paintings that oscillate between the representational and the abstract. Using acrylics, charcoal and graphite and other mediums, her paintings explore concepts of transformation, emergence, layering, and life. Some pieces appear raw. Others evoke a visual field of depth and motion through nests color. Most forms appear familiar—spheres, ribbons, knots, webs, branches, teardrops, eggs—but are put into new contexts as they nestle amongst intricately rendered lines, color fields or figures floating across the surface. Shapes protrude in a synchronized rhythm as they hover in ambiguous spaces, yearning for gravity. In Herrington’s most recent work, abstract shapes and colors, along with female figures gather in the vicinity of an untethered horizon—hinting at, transformation and freedom. As Herrington paints, her paintings utilize their own system of mark-making that gain meaning through crafted interruptions. Tension exists between background and foreground, between figures and signs. This tension hints at a coherent completion of form, but never permits full realization. The organic quality of her textured marks creates an ephemeral feeling, implying fluidity. This “unfinished” surface represents an unfolding of possibility. "We are all evolving and I hope that my work reminds people of their own creativity and unlimited potential." ~ Melissa Herrington