Mylette Welch was born in the sun-drenched, color saturated island of Oahu. Her family moved 3 years later to dusty, dry Bakersfield. “Something was missing." She remembers thinking. "Where did all the color go?” For anyone who has seen Welch’s paintings, its obvious that the color went into her playful portraits of stray dogs, children, old diners, and rusty trucks. Mylette’s paintings are rooted in the Sonoma County landscape- nostalgic places, farmers markets, vineyards, neighbor’s gardens. Occasionally her paintings veer off into a surrealistic world of dreams and memories, where goldfish swim around the kitchen and accordions fly through the night sky. “I like dreams bumping against reality.” she explained, comparing this juxtaposition to the moment you first wake up and your dream is “out in the room somewhere.” Her old yellow lab mix, Gus emerged as a major subject in many of her works. That will not change even though he has passed on. Her two pugs Winky and Buster are trying to take over for Gus. They were adopted from Pug Pro Rescue in Sacramento. Both of her dogs enjoy working with Mylette in the studio. She has developed a series of paintings inspired by the question "what do dogs do late at night-on the loose?” Recently she has been working on a series of political paintings and large floral works. Mylette’s work can be found in galleries and shows throughout the area and beyond. “I like to also show in alternative settings like restaurants, schools and the dog groomer.” When she paints, Mylette works fast and likes to listen to really good music in the company of a sweet Pug with three shades of paint on his tail. I try to have a good time,” she said. “When people view my work hope it makes them smile. Her Sebastopol studio can be visited by appointment.