Melinda Bryden

I spent nearly thirty years as a CPA and Securities Exchange Commission consultant. Creativity during those years was frowned upon…. So when I retired 12 years ago I began my artistic career by taking a 6 week class in welding from the Wooden Boat School. My love of bright colors made me want to include glass and so my career began anew. I am overly curious and constantly looking for new mediums that can express what is in my imagination.
My process generally begins with my seeing something, a flower, bird or object that interests or amuses me. Or it can start with a recycled piece of metal that I can see a way to repurpose. With that start I begin recreating it in colored glass and then fusing it in my kiln. Rarely do the colors I use actually represent the original object as is obvious in my Birds with Dancing Shoes and Bugs. In the case of Faces of Mother, I found the aluminum circles and determined they needed to be used in a kinetic sculpture. That led me to design the balanced base and fused glass pieces. Generally, I get my materials from garage sales apart from the glass which all comes from Bullseye. Recently I discovered glass enamel and have begun painting images for fusing like Spring!
Currently I am represented in the Verksted Gallery in Poulsbo. I have also been in Port Townsend Gallery in Port Townsend and Confluence Gallery in Twisp. For the last 8-10 years I have been on the Bainbridge Island Studio Tour, Port Townsend Studio Tour, Sequim Lavender Festival, Edmonds Art Fair, Art in the Woods and the Procrastinators’ Fair. I enjoy these events because they allow me to meet people and brainstorm new ideas.