LOUDONVILLE — The dog is the “totem animal” of the human being and many heroic stories can be told and remembered through this special bond between dog and human companion.
There is no stronger bond than the one forged in the stress and heat of battle where both dog and handler too often sacrifice their life, limb and mental health.
That’s the sentiment of James Mellick’s exquisitely carved, Grand Prize winning and attendance record setting wooden memorial sculptures, Wounded Warrior Dogs Project, that has been displayed at the National Military Museums of the Air Force, Marines and the U.S. Army over the last six years.
See six decades of the artist’s work at www.jamesmellick.com.
While the Wounded Warrior Dogs continue to tour the country through museum exhibitions, Mellick has created a new display of canine sculptures that speak to the companionship of The Dogs of War and Peace and stories about real K9 teams.
This new group of dogs is being displayed closer to home in the Midwest, at smaller venues and veterans’ events.
James Mellick, a Master Ohio Craftsman, sees this exhibit as a “homecoming” since he was born in Mansfield in 1947.
As a preacher’s kid he grew up in Wellington, Ohio before attending Greenville University in Illinois, and earned his Master of Fine Arts at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.
James taught sculpture at Colby-Sawyer College, NH; Houghton College, N.Y.; Calvin College, Mich; and Cedarville University.
When Mellick was not teaching college, he created art for sale.
Mellick’s life as an artist changed completely when the display of the Wounded Warrior Dogs Project won the Grand Prize by the popular vote of the people, at Art Prize 8 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2016.
James donated one tenth of his winnings to the K9’s for Warriors Charity.
At 5 p.m. on March 13, the artist will give…
