I have a reoccurring dream that I’ve had since childhood. As an adult, the same sensations and images haunt me in deep meditation and are the genesis for my paintings.

I came into the world through cesarean birth. My mother and I struggled in labor for hours. The memories of that birth affect me on every level, and thus, the way I view the world. I move from the pain of the birth to the explosion into life, and I am exhausted after each recollection of the experience. In the end, I always choose life, but the difficulty of that birthing process stays with me.

My paintings are an exploration of this memory that I carry in every fiber of my being. As I approach the blank surface of a new painting, I access a forgotten place, a previous life, and the mystery of the time before I existed.

When I paint, I am blending the past and present, coming into form, light, and life. These paintings are an expression of cellular memory—coming together out of the cosmic dust. They are a memory of a place lost that will be regained in my death.

They are about the will to live, breathe, and exist… both now and after death. They express who I am—my beginnings, struggles, and triumphs. Because I earned the right to breathe in such a real and fundamental way, I share the release of coming into the world through my painting.

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© 2009 Melanie Ann Wegner. All rights reserved.

All artwork appearing on this web site is the property of Melanie Ann Wegner and is protected under United States and International copyright law. The artwork may not be reproduced, stored, or manipulated without written permission of the artist.

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My work is dedicated to the memory of Victoria Hummel.