Critical Acclaim

"The great meltdown of modern sexual anarchy is the real subject of Melinda Camber Porter's work. Nevertheless she has some hope for a post- anarchic future. Even now, she seems to say, love is possible. A kind of love, perhaps. Some kind of love. Readers will understand, without coaching, what she means." - Saul Bellow

"Romance flows from her paintbrush and pen in various forms. Some poems revolve around betrayal and the end of love. Others speak of deception and counterfeit love. The lines of "Passion" and "In the Stillness" left me breathless. "Breaking Up" brought tears to my eyes. The paintings capture the spirit of romance as well. Ethereal titles such as "Man and Woman in Infinity," - Ann Abel
"The Embrace," "Frozen Embrace" and "Guardian of Lovers" captivate the imagination, and the canvases fulfill those expectations. I wish I could crawl into Camber Porter's watercolor "Couple By Water" or her oil "Women of the Self." Instead I'll settle for gazing happily at the works." - The Rice Thresher, April 22, 1994.
"Melinda Camber Porter skillfully picks and chooses what she needs from the entire range of modernism, exploiting and integrating all to openly probe her own deepest feelings. Her skill with color is evident in the richness of her early works, and her palette steadily brightens after her move to the States and literally explodes in the mid-eighties. These post-1985 works are as saturated in color as those of the Fauves. Her courage with color is matched by predilections for larger formats and for juggling figures and compositions in extremely original ways. Her fresh, lyrical canvases and ambitious themes are filled with personal yet universal symbols and should have wide appeal." - Nancy Karlins, curator and critic.
"Melinda Camber Porter's paintings remind me a bit of Redon (not the mystical stuff--that was intellectual fads or a historical period misusing his talents--but the later work, for example Flower Clouds (c. 1903, pastel 44.5 x 54.2 cm., The Art Institute of Chicago). I think Melinda has an elegant talent, even a talent for happiness, in painting. Being the mother of two children could rightfully exhaust all of anyone's artfulness. But, with whatever's left over, pushing herself in painting: as Rilke would say, think of what is difficult; and make each painting surpass the last; and express your curiosity about things with brush in hand. Melinda Camber Porter, who is Redon's equal and, with effort, outsurpasser." - Jeffery Paine, editor of The Wilson Quarterly.
"Melinda Camber Porter's work is so sensitive and sweet - a balm in our cynical age." - Lowerey S. Sims, associate curator of Twentieth Century Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
"Melinda Camber Porter's paintings, which I found so sympathetic to a region of my own self, reflect that authenticity. In my opinion, some of Melinda Camber Porter's paintings are as good as anything I've ever seen of contemporary art." - Peter M. Perhonis, Chairman of SCENA, Washington DC's premier theatre company of European plays, new and classic.
"Not since William Blake has an artist created such a profound relationship between the visual and verbal worlds. Melinda Camber Porter's vision is subtle, lyrical and has universal significance." - Leo Castelli
"Melinda Camber Porter's poetry and paintings have a soft, lyrical quality which is intensely attractive."
- Ishmael Reed
"I greatly enjoyed 'The Art of Love'." - Gallway Cahnal
"For those passionate about French arts and culture, Melinda Camber Porter's Through Parisian Eyes is like a daylong trip to the candy store. A well- rounded, intelligent look at the contemporary Parisian spirit." - San Francisco Chronicle
"One immediately senses what a consistent and quick-witted inerviewer Melinda Camber Porter is. I like her presence between the lines. In Through Parisian Eyes she brings out new aspects of French cultural life that are rarely perceived." - Catherine David of Le Nouvel Observateur
"The issues that are raised in Through Parisian Eyes are intriguing. It is very well done." - Joyce Carol Oates
"A particularly readable and brilliantly compiled collection. The voices of French intellectuals mingle in this uniquely constructed volume of interviews and commentary." - The Boston Sunday Globe
"Boat Child has great strengths, not the least of which is its stretches of brilliant comic insight. Some sections remind me of Shaw and Wilde. One can tell that there's real intelligence behind these lines and that the undercurrents run fast and deep here. A play like Boat Child immediately alerts us to an original persona here in the author, which is a rare matter, indeed. As a first play, we may rightly call it superb." - Peter Perhonis, chairman of SCENA Theatre Company of Washington, D.C.
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