Melissa Hefferlin

Melissa Hefferlin grew up in the countryside outside of Chattanooga, TN. She studied at the the Academy of Fine Arts (Repin Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture) in St. Petersburg, Russia, under Andrei Mylnikov , from 1990 to 1991. Hefferlin was the only American to study at that academy during the Soviet period, and was preceded only by James Whistler, who studied there in 1884. She also attended the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga under Alan White, and Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles, where she apprenticed with painter Michael Newberry.

Hefferlin exhibits with the Miller Gallery in Cincinnati, OH, Gallery 1401 in Chattanooga, TN, and the Paul Scott Gallery in Scottsdale, AZ. Exhibitions in 2008 and 2009 include two solo appearances, “Melissa Hefferlin Mid Career Retrospective”, and “Wish You Were Here”, a show held at Gallery 1401 in Chattanooga. She also participated in two group exhibitions, “Pastoral” held at the Miller Gallery in Cincinnati, and “Landscape With a Modern Edge” at the Newberry Gallery in Los Angeles. American Artist June 2009 issue featured Hefferlin and her work.
In September of 2007, Hefferlin won the Prize of Excellence at the Pastel Society of America nationally juried exhibition, in NYC. The City of Chattanooga chose Hefferlin to paint the commemorative mural celebrating the opening of the 21st Century Waterfront Development. In 2002 the Hunter Museum of American Art presented a solo show of Hefferlin’s work. That same year Hefferlin received the grand purchase award from Seimens at the “Art For Healing” exhibition presented by the Association for Visual Arts. Hefferlin’s career has given her the great opportunities to exhibit in Zurich, London, New York, Los Angeles, Denver and around the Tennessee region. In 2003, Hefferlin and her artist husband, Daud Akhriev, were selected for a six-week residency as guests of Maine’s MacNamara Foundation. She is an exhibiting member of Oil Painters of America.

Hefferlin is the current painting professor at Southern Adventist University.  She has guest-taught portrait painting at the University of Tennessee. Melissa speaks fluent Russian and has lectured on Russian art history. In 1999 she cowrote a richly-illustrated book about Russian painting, Traditions Rediscovered, the Finley Collection of Russian Art. Hefferlin has served on the board of the Association for Visual Arts and is an active member on the board of Create Here.