Melanie Bilenker

Melanie Bilenker (born 1978) is an American craft artist from New York City who lives and works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 2010 she received a Pew Fellowship in the Arts. Bilenker uses her own hair to "draw" images of contemporary life and self-portraits. The use of hair is an attempt at showing the person, and the moments left or shed behind.

Collections Donna Schneier Collection Metropolitan Museum of Art Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Philadelphia Museum of Art Racine Art Museum Smithsonian American Art Museum

Exhibitions

40 Under 40: Craft Futures (July 19, 2012 - February 3, 2013), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery, Washington, D.C. Wear It or Not (March 12, 2013 - June 2, 2013), Museum of Art and Design, New York Jewelry, From Pearls to Platinum to Plastic (June 27, 2015 - January 1, 2017), Newark Museum, New Jersey Outrageous Ornament: Extreme Jewelry in the 21st Century (October 21, 2018 - January 27, 2019), Katonah Museum, New York

Awards

2015 Peter S. Reed Foundation Individual Artist Grant 2010 Pew Fellowship in the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship 2007 Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship 2003 Sienna Gallery EA Award

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