Mount Martha artist Melanie Bloom is on a journey of self-discovery, blossoming into her new role as a full-time fine artist. Her professional life has unfolded in three inter-related acts. She was a portrait and wedding photographer for ten years. The next 16 years were dedicated to designing interiors for retreats and private homes. Now Mel draws, paints in watercolour and makes ceramics in her third and favourite act so far.
It’s remarkable that she has accomplished all of this while raising a family and battling a brain tumour, but art has been a major focus in her life and a huge part of her healing and recovery. “Drawing has always been my meditation,” she says. Creativity calms her mind.
Mel’s grandmother and great-grandmother were artists. When she was young, she loved nothing more than sitting in her grandma’s art studio surrounded by flower fairies and watercolour landscapes. Some of her favourite childhood memories were being in this space.
“As a kid, I was making everything and anything. I was always doodling at school when I should have been taking notes. I loved to make little animals out of plasticine. I loved photography. I was creative in everything I did,” she says. In that sense, nothing has changed.
Mel grew up in Hobart ‘before it was cool’. Right after high school, she left Hobart to study at the International Professional Photography School in South Melbourne. It was a great time to be in the field as the transition from film to digital was taking place, giving her a chance to work in both mediums.
Landing a spot at the Studio and Co. in Moorooduc has been a game changer. Mel has created her own light-filled little art nest populated by drawings, paintings, botanical ephemera and ceramics. Her beautiful work is often laid out on the rustic wooden tables as she decides if she’s truly finished with a piece. She’s in a growth phase. Her studio hums with creativity.
Mel’s work is an intriguing mix. There are beautiful women’s faces accented with gold leaf combined with flowers, owls or other birds, as well as botanical drawings and paintings of flowers. “I find nature grounding. It’s home. I love feminine energy and beautiful things. Mother nature rocks everything. I write in pictures,” she says.
I don’t know that the rhythms of nature can be contained, but I love the ever-evolving cycle of the seasons
“I don’t know that the rhythms of nature can be contained, but I love the ever-evolving cycle of the seasons. I see my work reflected that way,” she says. It’s the pure creative process that Mel loves most, despite the outcome. She feels there is nothing more magical than being in a state of creative abandon.
Mel’s favourite days are the ones where she’s in that delightful creative flow state. “Drawing is very relaxing. It’s my peaceful space. It’s very controlled and contained, but I also like to get my hands muddy. Clay is the yin to my drawing yang. I love the freedom of clay. For me, clay is play. I’m not attached to the outcome, unlike drawing, where the outcome is very important to me. I try to find my balance when creating,” she says.
As for methods, Mel goes about composing in a variety of ways. She uses digital photograph collage to create a composition. Then she’ll sketch directly onto the page. “All the finishing detail comes from my imagination. It doesn’t always go where I expect it to and that’s half the fun. Art should evoke feelings. I want a piece to be felt by the viewer. That’s my main goal,” she says.
While you certainly couldn’t tell by looking, Mel has only been exhibiting her work to the public for six months. She feels out of her comfort zone, but she’s been very humbled by the response. Her own inward journey of evolution is captured and expressed by her art.
“I’m kind of sitting in an unusual space. On a personal level, I’m not yet who I’m to become, but I know I’m not who I was before. This tension is represented by the hard graphite of my drawings and the soft wildness of the watercolours,” she says. One thing is for certain, Mel is one to watch. Come see her wonderfully atmospheric space at Studio and Co.