Growing up as the daughter of two artists gave Melinda a background for which she is very grateful. Art has been a part of her life since the time she could hold a pencil. She entered the BFA program at Indiana University in the 70's where she concentrated on painting and received a BA in Art Education from the University of Missouri in 1976. The following 15 years were spent overseas. Missionary work, marriage to a Dutchman, four children and a life living in France and The Netherlands only enriched her life as an artist. While living in The Netherlands Melinda began to focus on portrait painting and had the opportunity to exhibit in several local shows, teach private drawing classes and work as a free-lance illustrator for a visual communications firm.

Melinda and her husband returned to the United States in 1993 where she continued developing a career as a portrait artist. Teaching art and painting landscapes and architectural renderings have also brought her much success and fulfillment. Besides having drawn or painted almost 100 individuals in Europe and the US, Melinda has had the opportunity to paint numerous beautiful homes in the St. Louis area and beyond for architects, real estate agents, landscapers and individuals. You can view these works at www.thewatercolorhouse.com.

In 2002 she was one of two scholarship winners at the thousand-member Portrait Society of America’s “Art of the Portrait” conference. Recently Melinda has had the opportunity to study with well-known artists, Daniel Greene (juried class), William Whitaker, and Joy Thomas.  Juried Exhibits include: “Face it: Portraits”, St. Louis Artist’s Guild, 2003, “Explorations in Oil and Acrylic”, St. Louis Artist’s Guild, 2004, “Art St. Louis XX" ('04), the Tri-state National Competition of the Beaumont Art League (2005); Concordia Lutheran's annual show, "Soli Deo Gloria" (2005) winning best of oil; Twin Oaks Annual Art Show, April 2005, also won best of oil prize.

Memberships include: The Portrait Society of America, The American Society of Portrait Artists, The St. Louis Artist’s Guild (Art Section Member), Oil Painters of America, The National Watercolor Society and the Missouri Watercolor Socieity. Her favorite artists are: Rembrandt, Sargent, Bougeureau, Sergei Bongart, and Richard Schmid.

“To me, each new commission must be better than the previous.  Since each person is unique and beautiful in the eyes of the Creator, so is each commission an exciting opportunity and challenge to capture the character and spirit of the individual, as well as be an excellent painting in itself.”