Creating Visual Harmony

I am so excited to share with you a guest post today by Lynette Melnyk.  In this post, she discusses how music helps her as an artist in creating visual harmony.  If you are an artist, you might read this and find that listening to music may be just what you need to inspire you.  Art and music integration is so important and they really do go hand in hand. 

What is an artist

The word ART is something that many people take for granted and don’t really give it an extra thought. It is a simple three letter word that we learn at a very young age, usually when our parents give us a crayon and a piece of paper, we make a few marks and then it gets hung up on the fridge. An artist is born! We may not understand at the time what caused us to make those marks on the paper, but there was probably some unconscious emotional influence that moved our hand in order to express our creativity.

The Oxford Dictionary defines art as “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”

Music and art

But music, of course, is also art, in auditory form. Although when you go beyond specifically of what you hear – the actual musical notes and lyrics (if present) – music is also a highly visual art form. Watching musicians play live or on TV/DVD brings another total dimension to music as a form of visual art.

With that in mind, music and art go hand-in-hand, or in my case, brush-in-hand. As a contemporary fine artist, my abstract expressionist style is created from my interpretation of nature, dance and music. My work is like painting music, which may explain my multiple artistic personalities from my energetic and lyrical bold abstracts to my romantic organic style.

For me, music plays a big role in the inspiration of my art. Music itself is abstract. It is full of moving energy. When I play music while painting in my studio, that moving energy flows out onto the canvas in the form of lyrical strokes and movements. The creativity flows, just as the paint flows, while the layers and layers create a depth to the story. The strong or gentle pouring of paint on a canvas, to the pushing of paint with a palette knife or some other object, is all guided by the influence of the music surrounding me in that moment.

When I am not in the studio or dealing with the business of art, or coaching artists in business, I enjoy nature and travel, and find that listening to music enlightens my soul and reenergizes me. When travelling, I find myself drawn to the history and magic of the art and architecture that has survived the test of time. It inspires and provides creative energy which I bring back to my studio. Once I turn on the music, I find myself drawn back to those motivational forces which I channel onto the canvas.

It really does not matter what I listen to, whether it be pop, rock, country, jazz, or classical, the influence is still there to move me. After all, painting can be a powerful means of expression. You could say I am creating music for the eyes.

Lynette’s story is multifaceted. Born and raised in Alberta, Canada, she has been involved in artistic endeavours throughout her life, with formal education and experience in interior design, visual communication design, photography and painting. She owned and operated a very successful design, marketing and corporate communications business for many years. But after stepping away from the business and taking some time to recharge, in 2013, Lynette decided it was time to rekindle a long lost love for paint on canvas. It was a natural progression for her to continue to evolve the creative communication process through her art.

Website: www.lynettemelnyk.com

Instagram:  www.instagram.com/lynettemelnykart/

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/LynetteMelnykArt/