Melanese Reid is a self-taught mixed media artist evaluating the “self” through the interrogation of epigenetic inheritance and intersectionality. Using various materials such as acrylic, charcoal, and pastels on canvas and black paper, she creates figures that express deep emotion. Within those figures are line markings described as MAPS. These MAPS are representative of unresolved traumas passed down from generation to generation, i.e., lost identities, self-hate, abandonment, shame, loss of femininity/female agency. In addition, Melanese explores how her own intersectionality (being a person of color, an immigrant, a woman) plays into the traumas she is gaining within this lifetime. Her hope is to bring more awareness to Epigenetic Inheritance and expound upon the conversation of Intersectionality.

Along with her career as a mixed media artist, Melanese is a seasoned fashion designer and Patternmaker, having gained industry credentials interning and working at such designer labels as Theory, Jill Stuart, Rachel Comey, Alice & Olivia, Betsey Johnson, and Rachel Roy. Currently, she is re-launching her previous RTW line with a partner as a Contemporary Art Installation and Leather Goods brand entitled I Waited For You...

The company name is a double entendre, signifying the emotion one should have to own a piece from the brand as well as the feeling both Reid and her partner had when creating IWFY, as the collaboration felt as though it was something they had been waiting for.

Reid lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.

www.melreid.studio

IG: @melle___mel

_ARTIST ↰ IZZY NOVA ↱ Curation & Digital Strategy

_ARTIST ↰ IZZY NOVA ↱ Curation & Digital Strategy