Young artist to watch in 2022
Melanie La May, Most Forms of Irresponsibility That Seem to Make Power Necessary Are in Fact the Effects of Power Itself (Gas Station), oil, 20 x 16.
State in Which You Reside: Nevada and California.
Art Education: I earned my BFA at Laguna College of Art and Design after attending the visual art programs at the College of Southern Nevada and the Las Vegas Academy of the Arts.
Style: Representational, layered with glitch elements.
Creative Spark: The way sunlight shines on skin and foliage.
Second-Choice Career: Ethnobotanist.
Other Passions: Gardening, performing music, sustainability, and fashion.
One Thing People Don’t Know About You: As a kid, I wasn’t a “horse girl” or a “wolf girl” but an “orca girl.”
Best Art Advice Received: If you painted it once, you can paint it again. I use this advice when I’m worried about painting over an element that’s not working, because it reminds me that my paintings are a result of my hard work and effort, not flukes.
Biggest Fear: Roaches and global warming.
Pet Peeve: Feeling misunderstood and inefficient drivers.
Quirkiest Trait: I have a disturbingly complete knowledge of bear attacks, plane crashes, cults, and crimes.
Mantra or Motto: If you don’t do it, someone else will.
Favorite Studio Music: Music I can dance to and long podcasts.
Favorite Work by Another Artist: Ottavio Mazzonis’ nudes with glass spheres.
Future Goals: Grow a plant that produces a new pigment, produce art for sustainable causes, and build soil.
Price Range: $200 to $6,000.
Representation: Salt Fine Art, Laguna Beach, CA; Las Vegas Artists’ Guild, Las Vegas, NV; www.melanielamay.art.
To read the full list of 21 Under 31 artists for 2022, click here.
This story appeared in the August/September 2022 issue of Southwest Art magazine.