Description
Painted at the Surrey Hills Enterprises Wood Fair in September 2023. The sky was blue, the smells of burgers and candy floss wafted in the air, the sound of children screaming and laughing, and the live music completed the vibrant, happy atmosphere. Created in paint and pen on stretched canvas. It’s a very happy painting.
Mel Toms is a painter whose work celebrates the vibrancy of color, light, and texture. Working primarily in acrylics but often incorporating a range of other media, she is drawn to paints that interact dynamically with light—neon, fluorescent, pearlescent, and metallic pigments that shimmer, glow, and transform depending on perspective. Her practice is deeply inspired by the natural world, where organic forms, shifting atmospheres, and vivid hues become a playground for exploration. As a neurodivergent artist, Mel channels the restless energy of dopamine-seeking into bold, layered compositions that invite both movement and stillness. The result is work that is tactile, sensory, and alive—an expression of curiosity and intensity that seeks to capture the fleeting joy of attention held in the moment. With each piece, Mel creates a space for viewers to experience wonder through luminous color and immersive texture.