Exhibition · Arden Gallery · Other
Melanie Parke: New Work - Interiors "Light is the main character in my work. Or maybe it is air. I walk in twilight to observe the moon, the stars. In daylight, to watch the sun in the sky and the little things below." - Melanie Parke "I reconstruct interiors and garden motifs through ideology and memory. Collecting imagery representative of care, tenderness, nostalgia, I am interested in a practice of attentive observation. An affection for slowness. Windows and doors give structure to the ephemeral. At the edge of these portals are sometimes offerings, material objects that appear close at hand, seen and touched with the imagination. Tracing the gestures made by other artists in a familiar postcard, ceramic or sculpture, these are a nod to the conversations that go on between artists. What was once ephemeral has solidity in our remembering. We keep talking to artist friends and mentors through all the years of literature and art history. Flowers, which embody brevity, generosity, sentiment, center most of my work. The presence of birds suggests curiosity and wonder, sometimes allegories of fragility, sometimes euphoria. I’m looking for visual lushness. Contemplation. Sensations of consolation, longing and desire." - Melanie Parke, 2025