About Me

Hi! I'm Melissa and welcome to Melissa Russell Art. A place where I share my passion for landscape painting.

I am an artist living and working in East Central Alberta, Canada.

I grew up in Southern Alberta and started painting in a high school and immediately fell in love. I went on to complete degrees in both Art and Management at the University of Lethbridge, which only solidified my love of art, art history and the process of making art.

Upon completion of University, my husband and I moved to a small, rural town in East Central Alberta. Growing up in the flat prairies of Southern Alberta, the new landscapes of Central Alberta immediately captivated me. The beautiful thickets of trees, gently rolling hills and fields and the lush, soft hills and valleys were new to me and I fell in love.

There's definitely beauty in the flat lands as far as the eye can see in Southern Alberta. But the textures and variety of landscapes of Central Alberta have my heart.

I am a mother of three, two children at home with me and one watching over us from heaven.

We lost our first child, Aiden, in 2010 when he was unexpectedly born with a life threatening condition. He lived for 19 days before passing. And the loss of him completely changed who I am as a person and a mother.

After losing Aiden, I lost many parts of myself as well, including my desire to paint and create. I just couldn't find my creative spark in the midst of deep grief.

After many years and much grief work, sparks of creativity slowly started coming back to me. I gave myself an online painting class for my 39th birthday in the spring of 2022. And it felt like I was coming home, coming back to myself.

I felt a piece of my soul that had been missing click back into place and my creative fire came roaring back to life. I've been painting as much as I can ever since and loving every minute of it.

The landscapes we live amidst provide endless creative inspiration for me, including the seasonal changes.

When I'm not painting you can usually find me at home (my favorite place to be) reading, sewing, journaling, hanging out with my kiddos or writing for my blog Simple Lionheart Life, where I share inspiration and encouragement to help people declutter and simplify their homes and lives. 

Thank you so much for joining me here at Melissa Russell Art. I hope my paintings will inspire you and help you add beauty to your home and life!