Melissa King

Melissa King was born in Boston Massachusetts. At an early age she exhibited her talent for the arts and love for animals. She remained in the Boston area until she began her college career at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. There, she started as an Art & Design major and transferred into the liberal arts school because she never imagined it would be possible to turn art into a profession (she's laughing about that now). After she transferred out of the art school, she double majored in Art History and Communication Studies. She chose Art History out of a love for the arts and Communications Studies because she imagined a career in advertising and marketing.

Melissa in 2003 with her late dog "Smudgey."

Melissa in 2007 at the Big House in the Ann Arbor, MI. Go Blue!

While studying abroad in Florence Italy, she decided to pursue a career in art conservation. Conservation is a very specialized field that requires skills in chemistry, art history, and studio art. She has worked as a conservation intern at the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard, the objects conservation lab for the National Park Service for the Northeastern region of the US, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the painting studio at Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation, the Western Center for the Conservation of Fine Arts (Denver), Museum Textile Services and several conservators in private practice in the Boston area. She has participated in an archaeological excavation of a Roman republic city that was once known as Gabii.

After graduation she came up with the idea to start Pawblo Picasso based on a portrait she once did of her sister's dog, Peter, as a gift.

She soon found out that there is indeed a market for this and in turn made her business her main source of income, while she continued to apply to graduate programs in conservation. Her background in advertising and marketing has proven to be extremely useful. Melissa enjoys going to concerts, dancing, traveling, listening to audiobooks, skiing, hiking, running, biking, rock climbing, and yoga.

She is often looking for ways to incorporate elements from the music industry into her business. She loves live music performances, and has strived to create a similar draw to her own art through, "live painting." Her beloved French easel allows her to bring her studio anywhere. She has been sighted at local pet shops, dog parks, and sidewalks on nice days. She has taken several "tours" to promote her art through live painting and she encourages onlookers to watch and engage with her. Melissa is always looking for new locations to paint... Feel free to drop her a line with your suggestions!

In early 2017, Melissa's dream of attending graduate school in art conservation was realized when she was accepted into the class of 2020 at the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation. She graduated and now works as a preventive conservator / VP of Customer Success at Conserv as well as a pet portrait artist!