Melissa Gile is a self-taught artist working out of her home studio located in Hamburg, Germany. She grew up in the Pacific Northwest and has resided in Europe since 2014.
Her artwork explores the emotional spectrum of finding home and a sense of belonging during her emigration journey. Gile reflects her Pacific Northwest roots by weaving themes of nature, magic, and spirits into her paintings.
Her paintings have been internationally exhibited throughout Germany and the United States including Paradigm Gallery in Philadelphia, ArtMUC in Munich, INCorporating Art Fair in Hamburg, and Superfine Art Fair in Seattle.
Her art and journey have been highlighted in multiple blogs and publications, including Create! Magazine, Visionary Art Collective, Women United Art Magazine, The Curator’s Salon, and CandyFloss Magazine.
Gile’s work is available for purchase on her online gallery, as well as at PxP Contemporary.
Artist Statement
Since leaving Seattle in 2014, Melissa has made >18 moves within Europe and the United States. Inspired by her journey of finding a sense of home within herself during this time, her current series “Dreamland” explores her intimate relationship with the near and the far. By experimenting with perspective and color, she considers the spectrum of emotions associated with this period in her life. A vibrant palette conveys intense emotion and imagination, which for her are key aspects of losing oneself to a sense of romance in life.
She shares the beauty of this experience by inviting spontaneity and play into her process. Starting with a vibrant, contrasting foundation, she sets the tone of the painting with a smooth gradient base layer. Out of the movement and imperfections of this gradient, she uses quick brushstrokes to create the illusion of foliage growing from the cracks and shadows, echoing the forests of her Pacific Northwest home across her paintings. The looseness with which she paints gives her room to pour love into the process as she moves, letting life bloom from these spaces. Due to the fast drying times of acrylic paints, she is compelled to work in a state of improvisation which translates to an ethereal, dreamy mood in her paintings.
She hopes to inspire the viewer to pause and get lost in the enchantment of life, momentarily escaping into a dream of their own.