Melissa Dadourian
In my ‘UNCURTAIN’ installations and constructions I use repurposed fabrics that I hand dye and alter with cut-outs in a grid like pattern. Curtains are designed to create a sense of privacy and protection, my work here disrupts the assumption of this traditional usage. I intentionally create spaces with uncertain boundaries dismantling the whole notion of privacy.
The series of thread paintings entitled ‘SOFT GEOMETRY’ are knit abstractions that I suspend and float off the wall. They can be seen as reinterpreting abstract painting with a feminine bend. These pieces are often site responsive and maintain a passive-aggressive quality; they assertively intrude on a space while suggesting an approachable fragility. Similarly, the geometric forms blatantly interrupt an environment while posing docile.
The female condition and female empowerment is inspiration for all of my work.
Melissa Dadourian is an artist working in textile media, painting and sculpture. She received a BFA from Pratt Institute and an MFA in Combined Media and Painting from Hunter College. Dadourian has exhibited internationally and in New York. Recently Dadourian presented work as resident artist at the Courtyard House in Gowanus, Brooklyn as well as Sardine Gallery and a solo show at Mushroom Project Space in Brooklyn NY. Her work was also included in ‘Line of Vision’ at In-Case Art Projects in Bushwick NY and ‘Radius 50’ curated by David A. Ross at WAAM in Woodstock NY. Residencies include Mass MoCA, Vermont Studio Center, The Textile Arts Center, and the American Academy in Rome and Citè Internationale des Artes in Paris.