Mel is a ceramic and visual artist; working with drawing and clay alongside each other to reflect the natural world around us, consider wider contexts of climate, place and time and conceptual ideas around the fragility of humanity and its reliance on nature.

Currently studying the Level 6 Diploma in Ceramics through Otago Polytechnic, and the Quarry Arts Centre, Mel is inspired by nature, human early civilization, migration and climate change. Clay becomes a collaborator, allowing intuitive, explorative forms that echo marine textures, tidal movement, and the micro-patterns of the coastal environment.

Exhibitions

• Kings Theatre Gallery Kawakawa 2019

• Mangawhai Gallery 2021, Colour Burst with Marian Stutz

• Mangawhai Gallery 2022, Two Views with Marian Stutz

• Mangawhai Gallery, No Limits, October 2023

• Mangawhai Gallery, Liminal Space, 2025

Awards

Emerging Artist prize in Kaipara Arts Awards 2019

Shortlisted for the Parkin Drawing Prize 2024