By Shya Beth
After years of balancing the demands of nursing with the pull of painting, Melissa Mason chose to trade hospital halls for canvases and horse pastures. What began as quiet moments painting horses after work here and there grew into a steady, intentional transition, until art no longer competed with but became her career.
Now, Melissa has her established career as a bold, expressive painter whose work speaks to both the strength and vibrant life of her equine subjects. Like many artists, her love of horses started at a young age, dreaming of the day she’d have her own. That day came in adulthood when Melissa purchased her first horse, a Quarter Horse named Sonny, in 1990, but she didn’t realize the impact the new family member would have on her art and life.
Being a primarily self-taught artist, Melissa learned to paint through trial and error, which helped her develop her own personal style and techniques. As a horse owner and rider, that style also morphed into something different. She no longer just painted horses, but truly understood them from the inside out—how they move and how they feel—as anyone who spends hours each day around them does. With that in mind, the goal of each painting is not only to show the horse in their spiritual state, but to invite the viewer to experience the raw energy and artistic beauty of horses that can only be shared by someone whose life is dedicated to them.
Leaving Medicine to Create Masterpieces
In 2017, Melissa transitioned from her career as a registered nurse to a full-time artist—but her background in nursing laid the foundation for her eventual full-time artistic endeavors. Empathy, discipline, patience, attention to detail and individual care are all skills that nurses need, as do artists. Painting on the side while working as a nurse for years, Melissa’s creative side finally won the game of tug-of-war and the transition felt natural.
“I eventually reached the point where I couldn’t do both well, so I leaned into the art,” she said. “It wasn’t a dramatic leap, more of a steady shift until I was earning a comparable living with art as I had with nursing. During this time, the biggest challenge was the uncertainty itself. In nursing, the work is intense but predictable—you know the paycheck is coming. With art, you have to create your own structure and income stream. That shift in mindset took time for me.”
Financially, Melissa kept expenses lean and reinvested sales back into her career. Emotionally, she gave herself permission to take it one step at a time instead of expecting overnight success. Professionally, she learned as much as possible about marketing: seeking out galleries, art consultants and opportunities to grow her audience, as she knew that being a successful artist was just as much made from business sense as artistic capability. Originally, Melissa had wanted to paint both horses and non-objective work, and eventually decided to focus solely on horses because marketing two styles of work can be difficult.
Working for herself, rather than a structured “regular” job, meant that Melissa’s personal skills beyond the creativity needed to be worked on, too. She became even more disciplined about studio time and deadlines, balancing both the creativity and consistency needed to succeed. Even her idea of what “community” means was challenged by working with collectors, designers and other artists, as the art scene is very different from the nursing community.
Painting Without Holding Back
Every artist has their own style, and that style is like water—constantly evolving, flowing, refining. Melissa’s art has evolved over time, starting with more representational horses and gradually moving into abstraction that continues to evolve as she learns and experiments. “Color drives the mood,” she said. “I work intuitively, laying down what feels right, and then push contrasts until it just ‘clicks.’ It’s in the way the paint is applied, from large pours of color to drawn elements and layers of different marks, all working together to create a presence beyond the literal form.”
For others looking to pursue their dreams, Melissa’s advice is wise and practical: Start where you are. Build your practice on the side until it has momentum. “It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. You only get one life; don’t waste it doing something that doesn’t feed your soul,” she said. “How I made most of my success with exhibits and collectors is mainly through relationships and getting my work seen in galleries, working with consultants and, of course, word of mouth. One opportunity often leads to another.”
Now living in Central Florida on her own horse farm, Melissa has her muses in the barn, just steps away from her studio. Traveling inspires new ideas and refreshes her creativity with each new idea. “One of the most personal paintings I’ve created is ‘Graceland,’ a painting I completed when my mother passed. The message to my younger self along with this painting is, ‘We’re only here for a short time. Make the most of it, and don’t hold back because of what you think others might think.’ Eventually, I’d like to return to non-objective work and explore landscapes if I can carve out the time. As far as my own style and how it develops over the next few years, I see the horse becoming more abstract, merging more with the background, and letting the boundaries blur even further.”
For more information, visit melissamason.me
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