Melissa Hampson-Smith British, b. 1972
Melissa is a contemporary artist trained in Fine Art, Sculpture, Silversmithing, Carving, Performance & Environmental Science. She creates wearable navigation sculptures, talismans containing hidden maps & secrets for the wearer.
Inspiration: environments, deep time, micro & macro, space travel, colonisation of celestial bodies, mining asteroids, extreme weathers, discarded man-made materials, protecting our oceans & re-wilding Earth.
Working recycled metals with beach stones in situ on the Cornish coast, a rich metal mining area, she connects Earth, moon, & ocean. Adding raw & cut gems alongside ‘Future Gems’ (she upscales from discarded plastics) tree resins, seeds, found things, & vintage finds.
Education
2021 Earth Pigment Painting Francesca Owen
2020 De Beers Group Gem studies Diamond Mining, production, Ethical Jewellery &
Mining
2012 Mono printing Crypt St Ives 2011 Wooden spoon carving National Trust
2005 Open University Environmental Studies 2004 Action Factory Community Arts
Training. Giants making for festivals, stage backdrops. 2003 Caribbean Carnival
Training
1997-2000 Brighton University BAHONS Fine Art & Sculpture Stone carving, performance, the
readymade, film
1996-97 Oxford Brookes University Foundation Art & Design1993-94 Blackpool College A-
Level Art & A-Level Ceramics
1990 -2004 Wigan & Nationally Trained & worked as a CHEF
Exhibitions & Residencies
2024 Fascinum jewellery line launch coming soon.
2024 Currently working with the Welcome trust on a collection for them from my
archives of drawings & paintings responding to Trauma
2024 Bury Art Museum ‘Past Present Future Exhibition, chosen to exhibit previous
works & to create ‘Biodynamic garden Vulva Tribe’ project with Precious Collective.
Later in the year a film will be made of a tribal dance with the artist wearing the
costume & gardens growing from the seeds.
2023 Christmas card s Sheela Na Tig paintings Penwith Gallery 2023 RUUP&FORM
Winter Exhibition
2023 Electronic music collaboration.
2023 September Open Studios & workshops.
2023 Salthouse Gallery pop up & residency
2023 Exhibiting Barbara Hepworth & Space inspired paintings & drawings with Salt
Projects & Cultivator in Truro
2023 Penwith Gallery Exhibit Barbara Hepworth inspired Drawing2023 Jupiter Gallery
exhibition & live performance from my archive of works inspired by YOKO ONO
& in conversation with Faye Dobinson in celebration of YOKO ONO’s 80th
2022 Online Visiting Lecturer with London Drawing Group on YOKO ONO 2022 one
minute film fest with CAMP & British Art Show2022 Creation of Sterling Silver
chip/cake fork
2022 Associate Member Penwith Gallery - ongoing2022 September Open Studios &
workshops
2022 – 2023 Livingsone St Ives Artist20021-2022 Celestial Bodies Fronteer Arts. Two
paintings exhibited 2022 - current En-plein air workshops in St Ives & Cornwall.
2021 Drawing chosen by Mathew Burrows of #artistsupportpledge for ‘A generous
space’ Hastings Contemporary Nov 2021-April 2022 ‘Tony going back into the
mine’ made at Rosevale Mine.2012 September Open Studios and workshops.
2021 Awarded places on ANCIENT MATERIALS RESIDENT ARTIST Mayes Creative
Drawings, paintings exhibited in group digital interactive format.
2021 Rosevale mine pigment workshop & collection of rocks for working metal.
Discover the Copper I am using was mined in Cornwall.2021 RUUP&FORM Artist
@ London Craft Week wearable sculptures DISOBEDIENT2021 Radiant Pavilion
Australia, Precious Collective
2021 Alliages France, Precious things in times of Uncertainty with Precious
Collective2021 Awarded place on STARLIGHT RESIDENT ARTIST MayesCreative
Drawings & paintings exhibited in book.
2021 Works with Makers Against Extinction
2021 Doorstep Cornwall ‘The landscape’ is listening Stone Carving sculpture & Painting. 2021 Alicia Livingstone St Ives purchases two objet d’art Art-Jewellery pieces
2021 Begin carving Carnelian
2020 Accepted to Precious Collective.
2020 Y Galaeth / Galaxy Galeri Wales 10/01/20 - 05/04/20 Jewellery to navigate the
universes extensive exhibition of wearable art jewellery influenced by ancient
artefacts, travels through space and colonisation of other planets.
2020 UPPERCASE magazine (issue 45) Paintings of Cornish skies & piece on wild
swimming
2020 Begin carving wood & weaving baskets rom trees we have grown from a pip & Goat
Willow.
2019 PIAP Pass it along project, printed book, collaborative group works in metal work,
wearable sculpture. Three pieces worked on.
2019 VVM Venice vending machine textile & mixed media BROOCH. And Seed bombs.
Online publication.
2019 Paint 365 raising funds & awareness for the National Trust & Coastal paintings
swim project.
2019 Terraforming Mars bracelet, resin vintage test tubes seeds to re wild Earth or
Terraform Mars. Future gems jewellery the fusion of Ocean Plastics & single-use
packaging. Climate Change Warriors Brooch.
2019 Begin carving Ocean Brick
2018 Experiments -ocean plastics & single-use plastics accepted to Crafts Council
Directory
2018 Begin working metals with local stone.
2018 Swimming in the Ocean & Coastal paintings. Find new ways of working as now
disabled. 2018 UPPERCASE magazine issue 38 jewellery work
2017 St Just Arts & Crafts show in aid of Cancer Research - show Jewellery works.
2017 UPPERCASE magazine issue 33 Jewellery work
2016 Solo show & installation with daughter. St Ives Library Alice in Wonderland Under
the Sea -plight of the Sea Butterfly paintings & mixed media textile works mixed
media workshops
2010-17 Beach works seaweed, stone, paint, raking. En-plen-air paintings & teaching
watercolour, oils & mixed media
2011-17 Sunsets & Sunrises from our widow / jewellery development & research
2005- 2008 Land art Sculpture with natural materials & ice & Snow
2005 Fashion Show Blackburn 12 pieces with black light Sole parent bringing up my
daughter
2004 -2005 RESIDENT ARTIST Preston Art Pub exhibitions, Installations & live events. Art Trail. 2004 Commission Six Black light reactive paintings for the Art Pub.
2004 Textile Exhibition Blackburn Museum.
2004 Stone Sculpture pottery & craft festival Lancashire
2003 Stone Sculpture & textile works at Samlesbury Hall.
2003 Stone Sculptures Southport Museum. Art in the Parks & schools Willow & plant
Sculpture
2002 RESIDENCY SPAIN Three black light textile & paint drawn pieces for Hacienda
Spain.
2001 Land Art Sculptures with Sacks of deer Antler & Rams horn
2000 Film Exhibition Brighton Contemporary
2000 Vintage photo album infiltrated with hand processed black & white photographs
of my contemporaries.
2000 Group performance Brighton Street art festival
1999 Ongoing Site Specific Land Art, Ice, Ground Frost, sand, seaweed, plant materials,
stone.
1999 Installation / Environment ‘ Purple People producer ‘in disused Cinema Brighton.
Button Babies, school desk, book nailed to table, filtration system painted purple
throughout building.
1998 Installation ‘Make music not shit.’ Group exhibition in disused building. Toilet seat
made into a musical instrument, bathroom wrapped in cloth. Inspired by YOKO
ONO.
1997-1998 Exhibit jewellery works.1999 PORTLAND STONE CARVING RESIDENCY Brighton
Uni
1998 Performer in outdoor contemporary take on Alice in Wonderland.
1997 Large womb & birth canal structure, meditation space, made in response to
Glastonbury art festival huge interactive art piece that audience could walk
through.
1997 Portugal Ocean works with flotsam jetsam & natural materials, Circles @ the
mouth of the Devil. Photography & sculpture.
1997 Worked on decor for the main dance tent at Glastonbury.
1995-1996 Oxfam window dressing & display of Arts & Crafts.
Community Artist
2024 South West railways ‘Day trip to Happiness’ art jewellery Project.
2023 St Ives Kevranna
2023 & 2024 Carnival workshops with Lafrowda.
2022 Carnival workshops with Gollowan
2003-5 Action Factory Blackburn. Carnival sets, costumes & makeup, large backdrops.
Felt making, willow sculpture. Sensory garden, clay works, recycled arts, resin
works, Kawaii Japanese street costume & culture workshops. Art in the Parks &
schools Willow & plant Sculpture works.
2004-5 Manager, Chef & president Artist @ Art Venue restaurant (Preston’s first art pub
& vegan restaurant.) A-N mag Art Pub Trail.
2003-4 Caribbean Carnival Preston Lancs. Winning leads
2004 Carnival Neptune, Band design & creation, Giants. Eco housing/Cob works at
community venues. Youth works Preston graffiti wall. Designed & created a light
reactive Fashion show runway set in Blackburn with group show.
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Winter Exhibition 2023
4 - 22 Dec 2023Anne Butler , Claire Malet, Archana Pathak, Bridget Harvey, Erum Aamir, Fleur Grenier, Hannah Walters, Hannah Lane, Katie Spragg, Melissa Hampson-Smith, Naomi Mcintosh, Richard McVetis, Rachna Garodia, Solenne Jolivet ...Read more -
Disobedient
London Craft Week 2021 4 - 10 Oct 2021For the exhibition Disobedient, Ruup & Form explores wearable sculptures with makers who are disobedient to their material, whether by material, technique or presentation. These artists use their medium to...Read more
