Melanie Rinn Martinek

Oil Painter | Plein Air

Melanie Rinn Martinek is a fine artist and arts educator currently working in the Rochester, NY area. Melanie graduated from the College of Art and Architecture at Penn State University and went on to work for design studios in Boston and Phoenix. Upon moving to Rochester, she attended Nazareth University and earned her MS in Art Education and St. John Fisher for her MS in Educational Administration.

She was an art teacher in the Victor Central Schools for over 20 years. She has studied fiber arts, oil and pastel painting with various accomplished and internationally recognized artists. Her paintings and fiber arts pieces are included in collections throughout the United States, Germany and the UK.

She is currently an adjunct professor in the Masters of Science for Teachers graduate program in the College of Art and Design at the Rochester Institute of Technology. As a Signature Member of the Rochester Art Club, Melanie served as the club’s President from 2023-2026. Her painting studio is currently located in the former Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School in Rochester, NY.

Melanie is inspired primarily by nature. She uses what she sees and observes closely to make her art. As a lifelong artist and learner, she has an intense interest in color and color theory. With an academic background in fine art, fiberarts and graphic design, she has also practiced with various art media including pastel, encaustic, watercolor, graphite, acrylic and gouache.

For the past six years she has been focusing on oil painting, often combining the paint with cold wax to create textural effects and luminosity. Her style tends toward impressionism in the landscape and stylization of close-up natural forms.