portfolio
DESCRIPTION
Melanie da CostaTRANSCRIPT
MELANIE DA COSTA
Table of Contents
BIO 4
EXPERIENCE 8
ASPIRATIONS 18
All images without a logo are mine, unless otherwise noted.
Bio
Life is art. Growing up surrounded by culture has opened my eyes to the beauty in life. I am a Senior at Parsons the New School for Design, and I am graduating this Winter with the most ferocious of ambitions. Art has been and always will be my passion. Ever since my first fewelementary school art classes, I knew that art would be in my life forever. From being a 13 year old Andy Warhol "historian" to being a 21 year old contemporary art know-it-all, I've discovered that art discourse is what I excel in. I loveabsorbing as much as I can about the art world, and I am constantly looking for new experiences that will turn my curiosity into knowledge. I have been following the contemporary art market for several years and I want nothing more than to submerge myself into it. I scour NYC galleries every week and constantly research what is going on in the rest of the world. Because of my ambition to have a career in the art world, I pick up on the industry's subtleties very easily. I am confident that I would be an asset to any art business establishment.
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Previous experiences in the art world havechiseled my keen perspective on contemporary art. I have deliberately placed myself in diverse positions in the art world in order to gain perspective on all aspects of the business.
Working within an art gallery offered me insight on theimportance of maintaining relationships between artists, dealers, and collectors. Experience in museums has provided me with reverence for the didactic value of art.My experience at an art fair production company showed me the complex nature of what it takes to develop art events and art prizes.
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Most recently at Parsons, I visited young artists’ studios and curated an exhibit, all the while learning about what that end of the art world entails.Finally, my personal background as an artist lends me a sensitive perspective to keep me grounded.
I am confident that I offer a considerable contribution to the art world because of my qualifications, my friendly demeanor, and my eagerness to learn. The skills that I have gained through my experiences are valuable assets that I bring to any venture I am involved with.
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Experience
GALLERY. hous projects 10
MUSEUM. CCC Strozzina 12
ART FAIR. artMRKT Productions 14
STUDIO. Parsons BFA Exhibit 16
While interning at hous projects gallery, initially a photography gallery, the owner began torepresent painters. Considerable thought was put into the selection of artists, and curation of their work for the upcoming shows. I had the privilege to help.
At hous projects, I was involved in all aspects of the gallery. I dideverything from art handling, studio visits, and client services.
hous projects gallery
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I helped the owner select recent MFA grads to be represented, and later helped decide what works would be in a group show. My ability todistinguish the most relevant and strong works by the selected artists was a great opportunity to put my good eye to use.
“Most curators just work with what is given to them; I don’t think that is called curating. Good curators seek out the artwork that fits their vision.” -Elizabeth Houston, owner of hous projects
Kendall Messick, Conflagration # 31, C-Print, 40 x 40 inches, 2006
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I conducted research in relation to the American Dreamers contemporary art exhibition, and collected press information for future exhibitions.
I was responsible for editing the English content of the Strozzinawebsite, as well as writing English content for the organization’s social media websites.
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It was my responsibility to organize fair information about all exhibitors,sponsors, press, and host comitee members. I was involved in all aspects of the production process fromsourcing pipe-and-drape to running the audio-visual elements in the event theatre to speaking to guests about the art exhibited.
In addition to production related tasks, I contributed designs forvarious uses at the fairs. In this case, my design process consisted of many iterations of the company approved logo. My willingness to adapt to different styles makes me easy to work with in a team working environment.
Name
Zip Code
Email Address
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TEMPORARY PASS
TEMPORARY PASS
TEMPORARY PASS
Laurie Lambrecht, Imperial Palace 3, Archival Pigment Print, 24 x 34 inches, 2009
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Works ranged from contemplating the mystery of the subconscious, releasing physical control, reflecting onvulnerability, and exploring intricacies of relationships. Each artwork makes it ’s own statement, but because of my big-picturing thinking, I was able to curate the individual works into harmony.
I was able to successfully do this on my own because I am a very good multi-tasker. Most importantly, I am an amazing listener with an intuitive ability to cohesively link the work many different artists together.
Ariela Kader-Berliavsky, 2012
Danny Carroll, 2012
Aspirations
I will always be absorbing as much as I can in the art world. My learning will never end, and my drive to succeed will never cease. My determination to maintain the importance of art is what keeps me motivated to grow with the art market. My hope is that, byexperiencing as many aspectrs of the art world as I can, I will be able to approach more specific fields in the art market with a diverse background.
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