Melissa B. Tubbs has been creating finely-detailed pen-and-ink drawings of architectural subjects for 18 years. Her works document buildings and their ornamentation in order to preserve them for future generations. She is a firm believer in the proverb "The wise man preserves that which he values and celebrates that which he preserves." Form, line, and light have more emphasis in black and white, perfect for rendering architectural elements. She is interested in conveying the depth created by the contrast of bright light and cast shadows. The woodcuts of Albrecht Durer and the wood engravings of Barry Moser have influenced her pen-and-ink work.
Melissa's father was a pilot in the Air Force and moving every three years exposed her to many interesting places. She has always created art, but it wasn't until her sister asked her to create a pen-and-ink drawing of her father-in-law's house for a Christmas present that she discovered her love of architecture as subject matter. While the pen-and-ink medium is self-taught, Melissa has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual Design from Auburn University in Auburn, AL and spent 25 years producing magazines. She has been a full-time artist for 12 years. Her work has been shown throughout the United States and has led to commissions from organizations as well as private commissions.
Ms. Tubbs accomplishments include: "Carnegie Hall, NYC" published in Strokes of Genius 2: The Best of Drawing Light and Shadow by North Light Books in October 2009; "Empire of the Eye: Drawing Methods and Materials of Leonardo da Vinci" lecture to be given at the Birmingham Museum of Art in conjunction with the exhibition Leonardo da Vinci: Drawings from the Biblioteca Reale in Turin, October 2008; 5th Annual Evening of Arts & Entertainment, October 2008 Los Angeles, CA;"The Fine Art of Drawing" invitational at the Florida State University Museum of Fine Arts, August-September, 2008, two drawings; three drawings selected for inclusion in the Butler Institute of American Art 72nd National Mid-year Exhibition, Youngstown, OH; Merit Award, Alabama Wildlife Federation Flora and Fauna Art Show 2008, two drawings accepted in "Lineal Investigations" invitational at Housatonic Museum of Art in Bridgeport, CT, November-December 2007; drawing accepted in the Torpedo Factory Art Center's Target Gallery "Sense of Place" exhibition 2007 in Alexandria, VA; two drawings, one of which won 3rd place, in the 2007 34th Annual National Juried Competition at the Masur Museum of Art; "Twenty Years: The Montgomery Area Business Committee for the Arts," Alabama State Council for the Arts Exhibition 2006; "Connecting Alabama," six artists, Alabama State Council for the Arts Exhibition 2005; first prize and honorable mention for two drawings in the 2005 Selma Art Guild Juried Summer Exhibition; six drawings selected for inclusion in the Montgomery & River Region Sketchbook, a showcase book published March 2005 by Indigo Publishing, Macon, GA; an article featuring her pen-and-ink drawings in the November 2004 issue of American Artist magazine; a solo show, "Sunlight and Shadow," November 2004-February 2005, Wiregrass Museum of Art, Dothan, AL; "In the Spotlight," October 4th-November 12th, 2004, exhibition at the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA) Gallery, New York City; February 2004, traveled to Acapulco, Mexico to teach elementary school children art and art history; one of three artists exhibited in "An Absence of Color," December 2003-January 2004, at Marymount Manhattan College in New York City; received the NAWA Medal of Honor and the Elizabeth Stanton Blake Memorial Award of $1,000 for Work on Paper in the 2003 Annual Exhibition of NAWA in New York City; represented the state of Alabama in creating a three-dimensional architectural ornament of an historical home for the Official White House Christmas Tree for 2001 (the ornament is now in the White House permanent ornament collection); a participant in the Mississippi Art Colony spring workshop in 2001, which was led by Judith Raphael of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; past president of the Montgomery Art Guild, the immediate past president of the Arts Council of Montgomery and board member of the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts; a jury-selected member of the NAWA; recipient of the prestigious Eben Demarest Trust Grant, an award from Mellon Bank in Pittsburgh, PA in 1999.
Melissa lives and works in Montgomery, Alabama. Her work is on display at Stonehenge Gallery in Montgomery. She is represented by Portrait Brokers of America creating drawings of homes, businesses, churches, architectural elements and gardens.
