Melanie Barash Levitt:
How do you develop your unique style?
Melanie: My impressionist style has evolved through years of experimentation and observing the landscape en plein air. I paint outdoors year-round in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, where I live. Each season brings something different to discover. I primarily work in oils with a palette knife, allowing me to move, sculpt, and layer paint to create expressive marks and rich textures. I often scrape paint away and build it back up again to achieve different effects. I also incorporate other tools like rubber shapers, squeegees, and denture brushes to add variety and different mark-making to the surface.
When the weather is too cold or windy for painting outdoors, I return to the studio and use my plein air studies, sketches, and memories of a scene to create larger works. Even so, I prefer painting directly from observation. Being outdoors allows me to experience the changing light, color, and atmosphere firsthand while breathing in the fresh mountain air. Surrounded by the beauty of the mountains, I never run out of inspiration.
To see more of Melanie’s work, visit:
Website
For me, painting is both meditative and playful, though at times it can feel like a battle. Developing my style has required years of trial and error, and many unsuccessful paintings along the way. That willingness to experiment has been essential to finding my voice in painting.
