Melissa Breault
Canada
Melissa Breault is a Canadian artist dedicated to the study and revival of traditional drawing and painting techniques. Classically trained and favoring a contemporary realist style, she paints the figure and the landscape in soft pastel.
At the age of thirteen, Breault was the youngest students enrolled in the adult fine art program where her interest for drawing was transformed into a real passion for realism. She studied the foundations of classical drawing and painting in charcoal, oil, watercolour and in soft pastel, which became throughout the years, her medium of choice.
For six years, she trained as an instructor and taught alongside her mentors. This experience deepened her understanding of the fundamental drawing and painting techniques. It also offered her the invaluable opportunity of helping students achieve higher levels of realism and harmony in their own works of art. In 2008, she founded her own art school and has been welcoming students since.
"This has turned out to be one of the most gratifying aspects of my artist life."
Breault constantly and passionately continues to work on her art. She received the title of Master pastellist and is the curent vice-president of the Pastel Society of Eastern Canada (PSEC). She is an active Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America (PSA). She has won many prizes and awards in several national and international art exhibitions. Her pastel work has also received numerous honors, including publications in various international art magazines.
“I believe that the resemblance in a portrait goes far beyond what the person looks like. I believe that the beauty in a landscape is only well represented if it is able to light a fire in the viewer’s eye. While I paint, my goal is to provide the static image with the emotional content that it needs in order to come alive. Uniting sensibility and subject together, whether in a landscape or a portrait, is the main goal of my painting journey.”
* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 16th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.
