Elba I. Meléndez

Elba I. Meléndez (b. 1949) Ceramicist and sculptor from Puerto Rico. Her artwork addresses concepts on domesticity, the human condition in the Caribbean and environmental concerns. As an artist I was a late bloomer —Being the first in my entire family to obtain a High School diploma, after becoming a mother I felt inspired to pursuit a higher education. I hold a masters in urban planing and obtained an Ed.D in environmental studies. I began accompanying my children to art classes and very soon would join them in the classrooms discovering my passion for creating things with my own hands. Coming from extremely humble origins and traditionally patriarchal community it was very liberating to find myself expressing through an artistic practice. I formally trained with Zilia Sánchez at her studio who took me under her wing for many years until I began developing my own language. Ceramics is my main medium because there is always something new to learn from it; it is constantly teaching you and I’m here open for the lesson.   

In the last decade the audience for her practice has been growing and in the last few years an increasing interest in my ceramics has led her to exhibit internationally. Institutions that have exhibited her artwork throughout Puerto Rico include: Museo de Arte de Bayamón, PR; Sala de Historia Calzada Rivera, Canóvanas;  Liga de Artes, San Juan; Museo de Arte de Caguas, PR; Museo La Casa del Libro, San Juan; Recinto Cerra, Santurce; and Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico where my artwork is represented in the permanent collection. Outside the Island I have recently exhibited in MIAMI in Bogotá (2018); Julius Caesar in Chicago (2019); Storefront for Art and Architecture in NYC (2019); and Zona Maco, México City (2020).