Biography
Karen Mello was raised in southern Ohio, in the northern most county in Appalachia. While the area provided few cultural opportunities, Karen’s mother filled the void by providing a love of nature and art coupled with a do-it-yourself mentality. With her mother’s encouragement, at age 13 Karen entered a local art festival and sold her first painting.
Landscapes have been the theme of choice. As Karen paints the places she has traveled, she tries to capture the atmospheric qualities, structural textures, and light driven colors that delight and intrigue the senses.
A new thematic direction is the use of reflections. In this approach, she layers two or more reflected surfaces to produce a dream like quality.
Karen attended Ohio State University earning a degree in occupational therapy. In her first job, she was able to incorporate art in a program for patients in a psychiatric hospital.
In 2001, Karen started a library in an inner-city, Christian school. She continues to organize the growing collection and provide weekly lessons to the students.
Karen is a founding member of the Piedmont Pastel Society. She has served on the board as secretary, membership chairperson, and president.
She has exhibited in PPS membership exhibitions since 2006. Her work is presently displayed at Café 100 in Huntersville, NC.
Karen Mello
704–365–7858
