Melanie Little Gomez
I like that only one person can look at them at a time.”
Melanie was born in El Paso, Texas, and began moving shortly thereafter. She has lived in Germany, New York City, and even on a circus train. Like her residence, her art has changed over time. Originally, she began honing her craft as an installation artist. She then began creating books while still in university and studying under book artist and photographer Susan Kae Grant.
Melanie received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in photography, and immediately moved to New York City and began taking photographs for magazines like Rolling Stone, People, Time, Spin, Newsweek, Seventeen, and InStyle to name a few. She also had published works in US and international newspapers. Melanie worked only a few blocks from the site of the 9/11 disaster—a day that will never leave her memory. While in New York City, she also began creating album art and poster art for several bands.
Melanie discovered painting while living on the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus train in an 8-foot by 8-foot room with her musician husband and her dog. "There was no room to build anything—only room to move my hands." She found a small frame, bought some paints, and realized that painting was the medium for her. Six months on that train allowed Melanie to produce a small body of work—literally—all of her painting are in found, and mostly vintage, small frames. All 11 of her first paintings could fit into one tiny suitcase. When she got off the train in New York City she had a small showing in the apartment of a friend. A few paintings were sold and so began her career as a painter.
Since then she has continued to paint small quiet paintings which usually represent the coexistence of innocence and sin. Melanie’s work can be described as colorful little paintings with a macabre humor that tell stories of love and what it is like to be human.
Recently, Melanie painted the cover for the limited collectors’ edition of musician Norah Jones’ latest CD Not too Late.Melanie now lives in Denton, Texas, and continues to create beautiful and thought- provoking paintings.
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