I met Melissa Dehner, one of the most talented illustrators and artist in Kansas City, through my husband. He hired Melissa as a freelance artist to create powerful illustrations for the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. She designed an amazing image for the museum of a dragon for the Lunar New Year exhibition.
Melissa is known for her vibrant nature and science inspired drawings, but she is also a talented graphic designer and book illustrator and more. Her work draws you into to study the details and brings to life all manner of creatures.
From Childhood Creativity to Graphic Design
Melissa grew up surrounded by creativity. Raised in Colorado, she was influenced early on by her mother, a watercolor artist, and by a family that encouraged artistic exploration. In high school, she took every art and photography class available. It wasn’t until a senior-year in a course in visual communication that she realized art could be a career.
After a brief and unsatisfying year at Kansas State, Melissa transferred to the University of Kansas, where she discovered a program that combined illustration and graphic design. Although she initially planned to focus solely on illustration, she was encouraged to pursue both—and that combination has shaped her career ever since.
“I still think of myself as an artist first,” she says. “Graphic design is the bread and butter, but illustration is always part of what I do.”
Inspired by Nature and Science
Nature is Melissa’s greatest source of inspiration. She’s drawn to details—the veins of leaves, the structure of bones, the patterns found in insects and plants—and how those elements mirror one another across ecosystems.
“I love how everything in nature relates,” she explains. “Trees look like veins, veins look like wings—it’s all connected.”
Her love of science, particularly biology and anatomy, often intersects with her art. While her style has evolved over the years—from trend-driven work to more whimsical illustration—she currently gravitates toward realism and scientific illustration, always filtered through her own visual language.
Collaborative Work: Wild Words and the Nelson Dragon
One of Melissa’s most meaningful projects was Wild Words, a collaboration with Humanities Kansas. The book paired Kansas poets with native Tall-grass Prairie plants. Melissa created eleven detailed botanical illustrations inspired by both the plants and the poems.
Another standout piece was her dragon illustration for the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art’s Lunar New Year celebration. Commissioned for the Year of the Dragon, the illustration was used across the museum’s promotional materials. This was a challenging but rewarding project that showcased her illustrative strengths on a large stage.
What Makes and Artist Successful?
For Melissa, success isn’t about pleasing everyone.
“Staying true to yourself is the hardest part,” she says. “It’s easy to get caught up in what clients want or what you think people will like. But when you create from an authentic place, that’s when the work really connects.”
She acknowledges the pressure artists face—especially women—to fit expectations or constantly produce. Learning to step away, take breaks, and silence comparison has been essential to her longevity.
A Lesson Worth Remembering
If there’s one truth Melissa returns to again and again, it’s this: no one else can be you.
“Creativity isn’t constant,” she says. “Sometimes the best thing you can do is walk away and come back later. Give it time. Give yourself time.
In both life and art, Melissa believes growth comes from patience, perspective, and trusting your own voice.