Oro Valley Public Library Library invites you to an exhibit by local artist Melanie McPherson, on display until April 15, 2026.
Artist Statement:
I'm a local Tucson artist. I specialize primarily in ceramics, photography and charcoal drawing. I have my Bachelor of Fine Arts: specialized in still film photography and studio arts.
Over the years, beginning in high-school, I have taught hundreds of people how to learn pottery techniques and skills including at an adult day program. It is such a joy to see people fall in love with working in clay and exploring throwing pottery on the wheel!
My current focus is a passion project titled: "Breaking Fences." A series inspired by the plights of our wild horses and the fact over 62,000 are languishing in holding pens (more than those roaming free) and unfortunately the detrimental BLM roundups are still happening in the United States year after year and currently.
Wild horses are the icons of the Southwest! And our American wild horses are federally protected; the same as the bald eagle and deserve to be managed better from having their herds torn apart and sent to auctions which can lead to slaughter. One of the best proven solutions to this is humane sterilization programs.
I'm honored to be a volunteer ambassador for The American Wild Horse Conservation to help give our mustangs a voice and further protection! They also fund and organize sterilization programs.
In addition, I am a caregiver for my beloved father. He is my biggest supporter, spiritually and as a patron of my artwork. He is also a huge animal lover like me and loves horses. Unfortunately, he has battled numerous health issues over the past several years and has needed my direct assistance. I've been grateful to help him and have the ability to create my artwork while doing so. It's been an honor and gift to be here with him to say the least.
I also create memorial "Spirit Bowls" for people to help honor their deeply loved horses. They are wheel-thrown porcelain, horsehair Raku bowls embellished with handwoven horsehair around the rim from their horses. Please feel free to reach out to me for more information about them.
In addition, this photography exhibit was created to honor Karuna Horse Rescue, an amazing local horse sanctuary. As well as The American Wild Horse Conservation.
Images courtesy of the artist. If you are interested in purchasing any artwork, please inquire with library branch staff for a point of contact.
