Melissa J Harvey: The Guardians

Developed during a residency at the renowned Morgan Conservatory in the United States, The Guardians is a new body of work for Melissa J Harvey (MJ) that draws on recurring dream imagery. The works explore themes of protection and transformation through the artist’s distinctive papermaking practice. Spraying hand-mixed pulp pigments of abaca fibre and recycled cotton results in textured, ethereal compositions by the artist. Presented for the first time in Brisbane, this series reflects a deeply personal journey from subconscious vision to physical form.

MJ’s practice is grounded in a deep engagement with place and the textures of their immediate environment. She works predominantly with recycled cotton clothing and domestic cloth, sourced through local community donation, to create works that speak to memory, materiality, and sustainability. Recent career highlights include presenting her research thesis Pulping Spaces at the IMPACT 10 Printmaking Symposium in Santander, Spain, which was later published in Imprintmagazine. MJ’s solo exhibition The Silent Pool was held at Lismore Regional Gallery, and she was invited as a guest artist at the Queensland College of Art and Design (Griffith University), where MJ further developed her pulp printing techniques.

In 2024, MJ was awarded an artist residency at the Morgan Conservatory in Cleveland, USA. They were also a finalist in the Burnie Art Prize and will present a solo exhibition at the Print Council of Australia Gallery in Melbourne in 2025. She holds a Bachelor of Visual Arts in Printmaking from Southern Cross University and a Master of Visual Arts from the Sydney College of the Arts.