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Synesthetic Artist Melissa McCracken Paints Abstracted Depictions of Jazz, Funk and Pop Songs

“A Sunday Night”(2017), oil on canvas, 48” x 48”

“Wasn’t It Kind of Wonderful” (2017), oil on canvas, 48” x 48”Melissa McCracken paints what she hears, titling each of her abstract oil paintings after the songs that inspired the work’s expressive gestures and bright punches of color. The Kansas City-based artist has a neurological condition called Synesthesia, which causes her sense of hearing to trigger colorful depictions of songs and genres. For McCracken, jazz music appears as iridescent blues, whites, and golds, while an upbeat pop song is bright pink and purple. You can see more of the artist’s musical interpretations on her website and Instagram. (via Kottke)

“If I Was a Bird” (2017), oil on canvas, 24” x 24”

“Fly Too High” (2017), oil on canvas, 14” x 14”

“Live in Layers” (2017), oil on canvas, 14” x 12”

“Love Is Touching Souls” (2017), oil on canvas, 24” x 24”

“Two Drifters” (2017), oil on canvas, 20” x 20”

“Wasn’t It Kind of Wonderful” (2017), oil on canvas, 48” x 48”