Melissa Bruck
ARTIST

“I have always created art and found ways to express myself.”

I am a diversely talented artist that creates entirely from the heart and enjoy almost every media of creative expression.

✓  100% satisfaction guaranteed
✓  Extremely professional, yet reasonably priced
✓  Very hard worker with lots of physical energy
✓  Extremely capable of quickly turning your vision into reality
✓  Can communicate ideas, share detailed sketches and design plans
✓  Technically trained artist in many media
✓  Enjoys the challenge of the artistic process

I have been creating art my whole life and received a degree in Studio Art and Education from Northern Illinois University. I can most often be found working at my art studio at the Pauwela Cannery in Haiku. But you may find me around Maui and beyond….

  • teaching students at La’a Kea, the Hui No’eau or for my own company, Maui Mobile Art Classes
  • selling Maui Mandalas products
  • face painting at Friday events, baby luaus corporate events
  • full body paintings for an upcoming corporate event or doing “camo” to blend model into beautiful Maui locations
  • making and performing in gorgeous stilt-walking costumes
  • live painting on canvas at local music events
  • creating large murals or faux finish/interior design
  • painting surf/skate boards, mailboxes or even your car
  • creating elaborate performance art pieces at Art=Mixx
  • or in my studio creating detailed fine art portraits

Art Teaching History

Hui No’eau, Kids Classes, 2018-present

Maui Mobile Art Classes, 2017-present

La’akea Arts Foundation, 2014-present

Rainbow Chameleon, private art lessons, 2010-present

Right Brain Art Class, private lessons, Chicago, IL, 2008-2010

Dekalb Area Womens Center, 2007

NIU Art Museum, 2006

Rockford Art Fair, 2005

Artistic Pursuits, 1999-2001

Art Exhibitions

2019-“Malama Wao Akua” Native Species Art Show, Hui No’eau Gallery. “Koa Acacia’s Pretty Little Friends” Art piece made with my Haiku Elementary 3rd grade student’s art classes.

2019-“Children’s Summer Art Camp Show. ROY G BIV sculpture and “Dali, the zookeeper” art pieces made with student’s artwork.

2019-“Children’s Summer Art Camp Show. “HUEmanity;  Spinning Wheel.”

2018-“Malama Wao Akua” Native Species Art Show, Hui No’eau Gallery. SOLD the “Tribal Mandala” collaboration with my students work from the Hui Summer Program  ‘Conservation at Work Award‘ for “Forrest First” Photo of Body Painted Model into Native Koa Tree

2018 – Art Maui, Group Show, Schafer Gallery, MACC, Maui, HI, “Taste the Rainbow” 8 mandala series

2018 – Art of Trash, Group Show, Main St. Wailuku, Maui, HI. 6 sculpture pieces featured in a black light room featuring only my work of interactive, spinnable, glowing mandalas.
Honorable Mention for “Eye <3 U” Sculpture

2017 – The Art of Trash, Group Show, Maui, HI, “Wishing Wheel” mixed media spinning sculpture

2016 – Whole Foods, Kahului, Maui, HI, Solo Show at Cafe Gallery, Fruit and Veggie Mandalas.

2016 – Choice Health Bar, Lahaina, Maui, HI, Fruit Mandala, Mixed Media Mandala

2016 – Farmacy Health Food Bar, Pukalani, HI, Solo Show, Fruit and Veggie Mandalas and acrylic paintings

2016 – Art of Trash, Group Show, Maui, HI, “The Stairway to Heaven is Within” mixed media sculpture
4th place prize

2016 – Maui Open Studios 2016, Studio 14B, Pauwela Cannery, Haiku, HI, entire body of work on display

2015 – Malama Wao Akua Native Species Group Show, The Hui No’eau, Makawao, HI. “I’iwi Family” Painting by La’a Kea students’ group

2015 – “One. Two. Tree Exhibition”, The Treehouse Gallery, Haiku, Hi. 9 paintings and prints on display

2015 – “Eyes” themed art show, Body Alive Yoga Studio, Wailuku, HI, mixed media mandalas display

2014 – Mandalas Installation, Paia Tatto Parlor, Paia, HI

2014 – Maui Open Art Studios, Solo Exhibit at Art Chakra Studio, Haiku, HI display all recent work

2014 – Art of Trash, Recycled-Materials-Made Only Group Show, Maui, HI, “Hue-Man-i-Tea,” mixed media

2014 – Hawaiian Superfoods Cafe, Kahului, HI, displayed art prints for sale

2013 – Maui Open Art Studios, Solo Exhibit at Art Chakra Studio, Haiku, HI, display of all recent work

2012 – The Ultra Violets Shows, Haiku, HI, exhibited collection of u.v. paintings for display

2012 – Featured Artist at Choice Restaurant, Lahaina, Maui, 9 paintings on display May to Sep

2012 – opened 2012 Art Gallery, curator, Haiku, HI, various solo and group shows

2011 – Maui Open Art Studios, Source Group, Ke’eanae, Maui, HI

2011 – Dia De Los Muertos Show, Paia Tattoo Parlour, Paia, HI, “Candy Skull,” mixed media painting

2011 – Visions of 2012, Solo Exhibition, U of H Maui, HI, collection of 2012 related art
Best in Show

2009 – Art of Change Ball, Washington D.C., Barrack Obama Portraits

2009 – The Orphanage, Chicago, lL, Solo Show, My Mandalas, Featured Artist for the month of Feb

2009 – Installation at the Emerald Palace Gallery, Chicago, IL, Entheon and Winter Wonderland

2009 – Installation at the D.O.O.T. Fundraiser, TransAmeoba Studios, Chicago, IL, Mayan Signs

2008 – Fringe Art Show, Bad Dog Gallery, Dakalb, IL, T-shirt Mandala (fiber)

2007 – Flat Iron Gallery, Group Show, Chicago, IL current goods and paintings

2007 – Dekalb Area Women’s Center, Solo Show,  1021 State St. Dekalb, IL

2007 – Curator, Women’s History Month Art Exhibit, Dekalb Area Women’s Center, Dekalb, IL

2007 – Alex Grey’s COSM Gallery, original Face Exhibition, NYC, NY

2007 – The Orphanage, Chicago, lL, group show, Halloween Exhibit, current blacklight paintings

2006 – Jin Soo Kim Show, NIU Art Museum Gallery, Dekalb IL, “Space of Pressure” mixed media installation

2006 – Pajamuary, The Independent Rock Barn, SAHFGTJB, Dekalb, IL, “Hanging Words” mixed media sculpture

2006 – Resonate, House of 9 Dragons, Chicago, IL, “Eyeballs” mixed media sculpture

2006 – 3-D Show, Pleasant Street Gallery Dekalb IL, “One Semester of Happiness” mixed media sculpture

2006 – Entheon, Heir Gallery, Chicago, IL, Meditation Domes, Hanging Eyes and Zen Space

2006 – Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL, Creative Communication” mixed media installation

2006 – Entheon, Heir Gallery, Chicago, IL, “Hope or Fear” Polaroid project

2006 – Summer Camp Music Festival, Chillicothe, IL, “Music is our Religion” and “Moon Jam”

2006 – Wakarusa Music Festival, Lawrence, KS, “Moon Jam”

2005 – Black Box Exhibition, Jack Olsen Gallery Dekalb, IL “Support Our Troops” mixed media sculpture

2005 – Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL, “Jazz Trio” 3 large welded sculptures

2005 – Barnaroo- The Independent Rock Barn, Dekalb, IL, “DNA” mixed media installation

2004 – Visual Arts Committee Show Student Center Gallery, Dekalb, IL, multimedia works

2002 – ARS NOVA show, Jack Olsen Gallery, Dekalb IL, “Flamingo” mixed media sculpture

2000 – IHSA-High School Conference, Princeton, IL, colored pencil still-life

2000 – Artistic Pursuits Show, Ottawa IL, various paintings; van gogh boat(acrylic)

1999 – IVCC Youth Arts Show, Peru, IL, clownfish oil paste
prize – 1st in category

MISSION

I seek to create art for all of humanity, I want everyone everywhere to be able to see something I create and connect with it in some way. I love to travel the world experiencing firsthand all the different creative expressions of Life on Earth. These energetic experiences then in turn inspire me to create and influence the images I create.

Just as I have been inspired by countless artists throughout my life, I hope that what I create can help people tap into their own creative spaces and feel comfortable to express their own unique creations.

ARTIST PHILOSOPHY

I consider myself a creative magician that comes up with anything that I can dream possible. But I need to meditate in order to create clearly.  I feel the images I create coming through me from another dimension and my physical body is just here as a bridge to connect them into our world. Then I introduce the people I love around me to the infinite universe within myself and a beautiful relationship exsists.  I strive to make the communication clearer each time.

I am fascinated with the planetary spectrum of hue-manity. The rainbow is the most important element to me as an artist because it illustrates this idea of each individual as a unique and individual color that is different than any other color. Each individual color is correlated with a musical note and tonal vibration that helps us to recognize it and relate it to other shifting and changing color/tones. This is the energy that makes up our physical bodies. Look at quantum physics we are not matter, we are spirit.

Artists are planetary bridges. Every artist need to go within themselves to pull out their unique creative idea into to express it to the outside world. This process is not just spiritual, healing, and inspiring, it is absolutely critical to our survival as a species. Once we eliminate judgement and see that we are all connected through that inner space, we can permanently change the world for us all.

INFLUENCES

I think that sometimes we forget to have fun, so as an artist I have tried to submerge myself with the things that truly make me happy. I LOVE Japanese street fashion and Kawaii art, crocheted animals, multicolored afghan blankets, rainbows, amazing costumes, stuffed animals, body paintings, glitter, google eyes, multi-media installations and interactive art.

I feel music is my biggest inspiration, yet I am also I am influenced by  psychedelic posters from the 60’s and 70’s, henna, yoga imagery, the many incredible visionary artists of our time, scientific illustrations, Mandalas, nature and all of its splendor,  the ultra violet spectrum, black light theater and my surroundings here at home on the beautiful island of Maui.