The artist I chose to research is Melissa McCracken. I originally found her because some of my friends shared an viral article about her. She is an abstract expressionist painter from Kansas City. and a self proclaimed synesthesiac. Her work has similar qualities to aesthetic painter James Whistler and is also based off of music. She uses a mix between soft blended colors and textured brushstrokes as seen in the image below.

The Heart of Life. Melissa McCracken. Oil on Canvas. 2016.

Her 2016 Fall exhibition was titled Playlist No. 2, and all works included in this post are from that exhibition. Although I find her paintings intriguing, I am not a huge fan of her. What I like about her work is the techniques she utilizes, but I find that the images lack depth in meaning and inspiration. She is the kind of artist I look to for inspiration on methods I could use to express ideas of my own.

Boy with a Coin. Melissa McCracken. Oil on Canvas. 2016.

Although I find her ideas weak, her composition is strong and intriguing. Also, I think it is important to acknowledge what kinds of contemporary artists are popular online. I find it interesting what kinds of art and artists get shared on social media and what messages or ideas that portrays. Melissa McCracken is an interesting artist in that her claim to fame is from an article/video piece being shared on social media that portrays her work as special because of her “condition.” This caused some debate online about her art, with many claiming that she was too pretentious and not an actual artist due to the lack of meaning. I am not sure where exactly I lie on the debate. On one hand, I do think the emphasis placed on synesthesia is an exaggeration and can take away from the work itself. I also don’t like that that is the basis for all of her paintings. She never talks about including other meanings or inspirations or thoughts of composition and color. I do think her use of composition and color is interesting, but I am not sure how to admire it when the artist herself does not emphasize it. Either way, I will still enjoy viewing images such as the one below.

Hummingbird. Melissa McCracken. Oil on Canvas. 2016.