Tucson artist DeAnn Melton’s multi-year sojourn into the studio and personal spaces of some of the Southwest’s most prominent artists is both revealing and memorial. The majority of her subjects have been artists, collectors, museum curators, or directors—people with a high regard for and connection to the visual arts, hence the title of this exhibition: Masters and Lovers.

The artists’ portrait series was born in 1992 and continues to be a lifelong pursuit.
Melton states, “Years ago, I was told that writers should write about the world they know…My world is centered in painting, sculpture, and the energy of the creative spirit. I love the ‘studio’ and admire the effort of going to the studio, making mark after mark, year after year after year. Each time I drew the brush across my canvas to paint a portrait, it was with the awe and pure enjoyment of being in the presence of the artist.”