Harry Melroy (Sycamore, OH) Local Artist Of The Week: Harry Melroy Art & Artists

Harry Melroy:

EDUCATION 1971 – Ohio Northern University BA, Art  / 1979 – Northern Illinois University, MFA, Painting 

TEACHING EXPERIENCE – Findlay City Schools (Findlay, Ohio) Elementary Art, 1972-1976 /   Mohawk Local Schools (Sycamore, Ohio) Elementary, Middle School, High School Art, 1983-2015 /   Tiffin University (Tiffin, Ohio) Adjunct Instructor /   University of Findlay (Findlay, Ohio) Adjunct Instructor /  currently at Heidelberg University (Tiffin, Ohio) Adjunct Instructor

BRIEF LIST OF EXHIBITIONS: Toledo Area Artists Exhibition, Toledo Museum of Art (11 times between 1985 and 2008) / May Show, Cleveland Museum of Art 1984 + 1985 /  May Show, Mansfield Art Center (1984 – present) Best of Show 2011 /  Spring Show, Art Space Lima (1984 – present) Best of Show 2016 /  Retrospective, Mansfield Art Center 2012 / One Person Show, Art Space Lima 2007 /  One Person Show, University of Findlay 2019 /  Numerous other regional, national, invitational, and college exhibitions

About my work:

The pieces are certainly not meant to be snapshots of reality, and in spite of this obvious ambiguity, I don’t feel a need to interpret the subject matter. This would be pure speculation. However, I’m sure that, as in many art forms, the imagery is rooted in the unconscious or subconscious. This surreal quality allows for the creation of visual narratives where places and participants come together for nonsensical events.

My paintings are almost always preceded by small, very detailed sketches, and the colors (for both 2-D and 3-D work) are chosen arbitrarily and are juxtaposed in passages that complement the overall design. Local color (sun is yellow, sky is blue, etc.) is often distorted and sometimes avoided. A hue is selected because of the way it invigorates or completes the visual space that borders it or surrounds it. I’m always working to achieve harmonious color relationships and dramatic interactions.  

Titles can be very fluid and may continue evolving long after pieces are completed. In every case, a title is never intended to be an official explanation or suggest any interpretation of an artwork’s content. Viewers are encouraged to follow their inner voices when attaching stories to the images.