1942-2024

Ed Mell (American, 1942-2024)

Ed Mell was born and raised in Pheonix, AZ. He studied graphic art at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angleles and in the 1970s, spent his summbers teaching an art program at the Hopi reservation in Hotevilla, AZ. 

Mell's style, which he dubbed "desert modernism," features expressive colors, sharp lines, and a blend of Art Deco and Cubist influences. His landscapes, painted from both photographs and sketches, aimed to capture the mood and essence of a place rather than replicate it in detail. In addition to landscapes, Mell also created "flowerscapes" and scenes of desert life, including cars, cowboys, and cattle. In the 1980s, he expanded his artistic range by experimenting with bronze cast sculptures.

Over the course of his career, Mell’s work earned a place in prestigious collections, including the Phoenix Art Museum, the Booth Western Art Museum in Georgia, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art.