Snail mail, awful little creatures, and a few updates

Snail Mail

Hey, remember me? 

It’s been a little while since my last update here (December 11th was my last blog post! whoops). How’s your new year going? Have you resolution-ed your way into a brick wall?

One of the fun things I started doing at the end of 2025 was sending snail mail to my long-distance friends. I’ve lived all over Canada, so I have friends from my undergrad in Brandon, LOTS from Halifax, and so many friends I met through my residency at Medalta. The Medalta friends are spread far and wide, and y’know, after spending a whole year with some folks it’s really weird to not see them every day, even though the residency ended in July. 

I remember being a kid and getting so excited when I got “fun” mail. Birthday cards, Christmas cards, sometimes Halloween cards. Valentine cards in class were also fun (we’d give one to everyone in our class) and they’d usually have those heart-shaped lollipops taped to them. Not really mail, but still fun. 

I want to keep that feeling alive, I guess. And, with the whole state of Canada Post (and how it might cease to be…) I feel like I should (and could) do something to make sure it continues to exist. So, I’m sending snail mail! 

I went to the thrift store and bought a bunch of vintage greeting cards and fancy paper to write on. Some people have gotten recipes from me, others have gotten hand-painted garlands like the one above. It’s a way for me to slow down a bit and really connect with people. AND (the most exciting part) I’ve started to get mail back! Wahoo! Fun Mail!

Updates!

If you’ve kept up with my Instagram you’ll know that there are some updates that have happened since December that I haven’t written about on the blog. 

Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant

I received a second grant from the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation! This grant will support the creation of a new body of work to be exhibited at St. Mary’s University Art Gallery in Halifax. When I applied for the grant, this show wasn’t entirely confirmed but I am super excited to say that now it is!! One day we’ll nail down dates, but for now, knowing that it’s certain is really exciting. 

https://www.elizabethgreenshieldsfoundation.ca/en/grantees/year/2025

Award!

I am also super excited to announce that I am the 2025 recipient of The Linda Stanier & Family Memorial Award for Excellence in Ceramics. This award is offered every 2 years by the Alberta Craft Council and recognizes a full-time, studio-based ceramicist who works and resides in Alberta. Thank you to Alberta Craft Council and the Stanier Family for supporting my practice. 

https://www.albertacraft.ab.ca/awards-alberta-craft-council

photo: Cheyenne Mappleback

Solo Exhibition!

My solo exhibition Frogs’ Return  opened at The Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery at the end of January! This exhibition is up until May 24th in the emerging artists gallery. I’m really hoping I get a chance to visit Waterloo before it closes. This show was masterfully curated by Cheyenne Mappleback. I’ve seen photos on instagram from friends who have attended the exhibition and it looks AMAZING.

https://www.theclayandglass.ca/exhibitions/frogs-return/

Studio Updates

If you mix a frog with an isopod you get a....isofrog? frogipod?

I can’t remember if I’ve posted about the Pond Hybrid series on this platform yet, but I’ve DEFINITELY talked about it on Instagram. The Pond Hybrids are a project I started when I moved into my home studio last September. I needed a simple project that would…stretch my brain a bit but had the decisions taken care of. If that makes any sense.

the chart of doom

I made a chart that had a bunch of different organisms commonly found in/near ponds in SE Alberta. Then I made the combinations of those organisms. It’s been a lot of fun splicing together these strange, awful little creatures (I’ve been calling them awful out of love <3) I love them so much. 

some of the glazed pieces from Pond Hybrids

Many of the Pond Hybrids have been glazed already, and the rest of them are going to be fired next week. I’m sure I’ll get around to showing you all what they look like eventually.

freaky little babies ready to get fired next week. I have to transport them like this: if the thin little pieces (like the frogs' feet) touch ANYTHING they'll just snap off and I'll cry

Time to take a bunch of slightly better-than-mediocre photos

I GOT A PHOTO BOOTH. My Christmas present to myself was a simple lightbox! Now I can take half-decent photos of my work again. I need to get a new backdrop for it, though. The one it came with is oddly creased and it sucks to edit it out of every photo. 

Collage party for 1

Remember how I keep saying I’ll write about the Bio-Indicators? Yeah, well, that hasn’t happened yet. I still haven’t fully put the series to words, if that makes sense. There is a show coming up eventually that features the first of these machines (oooh secrets!). So, if you've been waiting on the edge of your seat for me to FINALLY say something about these things then you're in luck! I will eventually have to write about them.

This week I put together an educational project to go along with the show, so for one whole morning I was a collage artist! I’m still finding little scraps of paper everywhere!

That’s all from me, for now anyway! I’ll have another update next month with nice photos of all the weird and awful (*with love <3) creatures I’ve made. 

Until next time, 

Melanie