BIO

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Melanie Martinez is a social realist painter working primarily in oil. Her subject matter portrays slices of contemporary American life. Like a reporter investigating a story, she seeks to understand the relationships between communities, their residents, and their built and natural environment.

 

Born in Austin, but raised in the nearby Army town of Killeen, Melanie knew to get back to Austin as soon as possible. Her passion for journalism led her to work as an editor and writer at several newspapers and magazines in Texas, Chicago, and Mexico City. Over the years, Melanie’s inquisitiveness has led her to work in horticulture, historic preservation, and interior design, as well as play bass in a local band. Her deeply ingrained interest in bioregionalism, combined with the questioning nature of a reporter, inspires her work, no matter the medium or subject.

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CURRICULUM VITAE

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EDUCATION

              B.F.A. Studio Art, Painting, Spring 2020
                      Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas

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              B.S. Family Consumer Science, Interior Design, Spring 2020
                      Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas

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              B.A. Liberal Arts,  English (major) and American Studies (minor), Fall 1989
                       The University of Texas at Austin

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EXHIBITIONS           

              Marfa Invitational, St. George Exhibition Hall 

                       Marfa, Texas, May 15-26, 2025

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              Austin Studio Tour 2024

                       Austin, Texas, November 16-17, 2024

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              Austin Studio Tour Group Exhibition 2024, George Washington Carver Museum

                       Austin, Texas, November 8-23, 2024

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              'Open Space,'  ICOSA Collective, Canopy Arts Complex

                       Austin, Texas, November 16-23, 2024

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              Austin Studio Tour 2023

                       Austin, Texas, November 2023

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              Austin Studio Tour 2022 & Exhibition, Mexican American Cultural Center 

                       Austin, Texas, November 2022

 

              Student Juried Exhibition, Texas State University Galleries,  July 2020

                        Curated by Ed Schad, Curator and Publications Manager at The Broad in Los Angeles

              B.F.A. Thesis Exhibition, Texas State University, (Online) May 2020- Infinity

                       https://bfa2020.wp.txstate.edu/melanie-martinez/

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PUBLICATIONS

               The New Southern Fugitives, "Killer,"  Vol. 3, Issue 9. March 2020 

               The New Southern Fugitives, "Affordable Housing,"  Vol. 3, Issue 6. February 2020 

               The New Southern Fugitives, "Domino's Delivers,"  Vol. 3, Issue 1. December 2019 

               Sunspot Literary Journal, "Saturday in the Park,"  Vol. 1, Issue 5. December 2019
   

INTERNSHIPS

                  Texas Historical Commission, Courthouse Preservation Program, Austin, Texas, Summer 2019

                          Researcher, Historic Interior Materials

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                 Serie Project XIV, Coronado Studio, Austin, Texas, Summer 2007
                         Serigraphy Apprenticeship with Master Printer Sam Coronado

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