Play Big!

Detail of an Illustration (by Melani Grube) of a woman playing a very large string bass, a ribbon-framed corner and a flurry of butterflies emerging from the strings.

  How are you enjoying your Saturday? Let me encourage you to: Play Big! Work, rest or play, let’s put everything we’ve got into each day,  and we will make a difference in our lives and the world around us. Fiddle on.

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Happy Father’s Day!

A detail from a painting of A father and son build sand castles at the beach on a sunny day with the cheerful blue and aqua ocean waves rolling in behind them and a bright banner of crabs, starfish and scallops blows in the breeze, while a family of turtles gathers nearby on the sandy shoreline.

  Happy Father’s Day! Some of the best memories come from shared projects between parents and children, like building sand castles on a sunny beach with the merry waves of the ocean rolling in behind them. A cheerful banner with a scallop, a starfish, and a crab (you can also just make out the tentacles…

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Illustrated Title Banner for the Painting, “Wild Horses”

A detail from Hand-lettered title for the painting, "Wild Horses", with illustration element of a horse head with flowing mane.

  Happy Sunday! I hope you are having a wild and wonderful time. “Wild Horses” is the title of my newest painting for which I have been sharing the work-in-progress pictures. Now, watch for my next post when I reveal the completed piece. What is your favorite thing to do on Sundays? Tell me about…

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Horse Protection Day

Detail from pen and ink illustration of a cantering horse, mane flowing, tail flying behind.

  Horse Protection Day is March 1st (I know I missed it by a couple months. I just found out about it.) It was founded by pet lifestyle expert and animal behaviorist Colleen Page to bring awareness to the plight of both wild horses and unwanted horses being auctioned to be slaughtered for their meat.…

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Just In: A Solo Show!

Announcement of upcoming solos show for Melani Grube with details from a trio of her paintings: Afternoon, Revisited; Wild Horses: Horse Cantering.

  I’m so excited! I met with Tyler White, the manager at Pause Coffee in Fair Oaks, CA and he has invited me to collaborate with them and put on a solo show of my artwork. This is incredible because it will allow you to see the original pieces in person, which is a completely…

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Everyone Loves a Good Race

A detail from A pen and ink portrait of a horse and jockey racing across the field. The horse is "Bravazo" in the Preakness Stakes 2018.

  A happy accident: posting about my newest painting of horses and the 2nd of the Triple Crown horse races, the Preakness Stakes 2018, happening this weekend. So, I couldn’t resist illustrating one of the favorites to win, “Bravazo“. His trainer, D. Wayne Lukas, has won with four horses before this. But really, it’s the…

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Happy Mother’s Day!

Pen and ink portrait of Native American heroine Sacagawea with her infant son on her back. Blue ink and blue wash featured.

  Happy Mother’s Day! In developing a pen and ink portrayal of Sacagawea, one famous mother, I created a lot of “good try’s” (those images that didn’t make the grade). First off, I was working from my imagination, because there are no photos of Sacagawea. There is a painting of her with Lewis and Clark,…

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Selfie, Sorta

Detail from A sketched "selfie" of artist Melani Grube. Red hair, bobbed, glasses, face.

  A selfie, sort of. A sketch of me, if I looked a little different. So, really, it’s a character sketch based on me. Sketching seems to be a series of choices. Which features do I include? Which features do I imply? How close to reality do I take this? How much do I let…

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When Red Beret Meets Raspberry Beret

Girl in a raspberry colored beret.

  Ever get a song stuck in your head? As I worked on my version of Picasso’s “Woman in a Red Beret “, the song, “Raspberry Beret “, by Prince floated into my mind. I started to wonder if Prince had been inspired by Picasso, too. And then, I realized the poetry of following “…berry”…

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The Girl Who Left Home to Learn David Hockney

A detail from Melan Grube's sketch of David Hockney's etching of Rapunzel, the Older, for his book, "Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm". A woman with incredibly long hair, flowing down her back and piled on the floor behind her. She wears a long gown and carries two white, long-stemmed lily flowers.

  Oh, I had such a fantastical afternoon, once upon a too bright Saturday. I found my way into the strangely dim, yet clear light of a brand new art center and its surprising gem of a show: David Hockney‘s Etchings from his book, “Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm“. These fairy tales are…

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