I have been a professional
illustrator for almost 25 years! My strength is my versatility. Many art directors
have said that I can do anything. One could not receive a more gratifying compliment.
My work runs the gamut from interior art for Gary Zukav and Linda Francis’ books
The Heart of the Soul and The Mind of the Soul to book jackets for Padraic Colum’s
classic mythology books, The Children of Odin, The Golden Fleece and The Children’s
Homer. I have painted a restaurant menu for Picholene in New York City to match
the Limoges plates and done the illustration for the El Paso Chile Company’s “Calvert’s” line
of mustards and marinades. I have drawn scores of maps in styles from Mexican
to Indian and illustrated numerous cookbooks (covers and interiors). Years ago
I designed a poster for The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in cut paper
and a huge banner was made of my design to hang in front of the building. My
cut paper work was also featured on Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares albums and CDs
for Nonesuch Records. All in all I have enjoyed the stimulation of the variety
of the work that has come my way.
My art education took place in New York City at the High School of Music and
Art and The Cooper Union. I started out freelancing with my calligraphy and lettering
and did a lot of production work to supplement my income. Eventually I felt that
I wanted to do more than just lettering and turned to illustration. The idea
of work for print had great appeal. I assembled a portfolio and soon got assignments
from magazines and newspapers. This lead to more work in publishing and to this
day I very much enjoy being involved with book jackets and interiors. However,
the whole industry is changing so much. More and more work is done in-house and
quality isn’t always the main consideration. I have been called in on a
number of projects at the eleventh hour where the art director says they simply
have to commission new art. They cannot find what they want in the stock houses
or in royalty-free sources and they want to make the book look good. Those are
my favorite calls!
Please visit my website: www.melaniemarderparks.com. You will get some idea of
my range. I love what I do and I love being involved in work for print.
I have been a professional
illustrator for almost 25 years! My strength is my versatility. Many art directors
have said that I can do anything. One could not receive a more gratifying compliment.
My art education took place in New York City at the High School of Music and
Art and The Cooper Union. I started out freelancing with my calligraphy and lettering
and did a lot of production work to supplement my income. Eventually I felt that
I wanted to do more than just lettering and turned to illustration. The idea
of work for print had great appeal. I assembled a portfolio and soon got assignments
from magazines and newspapers. This lead to more work in publishing and to this
day I very much enjoy being involved with book jackets and interiors. However,
the whole industry is changing so much. More and more work is done in-house and
quality isn’t always the main consideration. I have been called in on a
number of projects at the eleventh hour where the art director says they simply
have to commission new art. They cannot find what they want in the stock houses
or in royalty-free sources and they want to make the book look good. Those are
my favorite calls!
