Artist Spotlight - Melina Finkelstein — Contemporary Art Curator Magazine

Biography

Melina Finkelstein is an Oakland-based geometric painter and rug designer who paints bold patterns on fabric and wood, weaves tapestries out of old paintings and collaborates with weavers and felt makers in Mexico and Nepal to make one-of-a-kind custom rugs under the labels Peace Industry TM and Casa Muñiz Design.

Nitrous, 2020, acrylic on wood, 91 x 91 cm

1992 Received a BFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago
2024 Renewal of the iconic Peace Industry ™ brand with an all-woman team in Kathmandu, Nepal trained by Finkelstein. peaceindustryrugs.com
2022 Established the Melina Finkelstein Gallery located in Oakland, CA to showcase artwork by Finkelstein and artists who explore textile-based mediums.

Garden on Mercy, 2024, fabric paint on cotton twill, 122 x 183 cm

2020 Established a partnership with master Oaxacan weaver, Alejandro Gonzalez to produce flat weave rugs based on pattern paintings under the name Casa Muñiz Design, a creative brand that represents this project. Casamunizdesign.com
2018 Invited to speak to The Friends of Islamic Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art NY about the Peace Industry TM felt project in Iran and Turkey.

Rose Tapestry, 2022, mixed media woven deconstructed paintings, 152 x 122 cm

2002- 2019 Co-founded and served as the lead designer and creative director of Peace Industry INC, a highly successful rug company that specialized in felted wool rugs made in Iran designed by Finkelstein. Peace Industry INC was shuttered after US/Iran trade sanctions which ended all trade with Iran.

Noteworthy collaborators include: Heath Ceramics, Steelcase, Alison Damonte Design. While in operation Peace Industry opened three retail locations in the Bay Area, two stores in Stockholm, Sweden and production facilities in Iran and Turkey. Finkelstein is currently relaunching Peace Industry TM with a new all-woman team of felt makers in Nepal

Fuller rug, 2007, wool felt, 244 x 305 cm

‘95-2000 Red Hook, NY, Established an art practice and studio while working as a fit consultant to the fashion industry.
Noteworthy Collectors: Agnes Gund, Jack Hanley, Eleanore Harwood, Barry McGee, Matt Gonzalez

Artist Statement

I use color to express how I truly feel about myself and my life. Making art is a highly emotional experience. It is a calling and a fulfillment of my destiny. It is my true passion and my constant companion. This is the voice that I use to talk to my past and manifest my future.

Still Life 1, 2022, oil on wood, 70 x 70 cm

When I was four years old my mother told me that I would be an artist and that I would live in Paris. Everything I am and everything I do is for her. All of the flowers in my paintings are for her and to honor the spirit of creativity that I inherited. Color is the medium that channels the connection between my subconscious and conscious minds and to the collective source of all creativity.

Hello It's Me, 2022, oil on wood, 91 x 91 cm

My process: I start with a graphite grid- whether I’m starting a painting or a tapestry I always start with a grid drawn with a pencil. The grid is my foundation. It is the structure underneath the matrix that calls me in to explore the cosmos and dimensions of time, space, and reality. I invite the energy of chance by selecting ratios within the grid and drawing lines based on those choices.

Temple rug, 2024, wool felt, 122 x 183 cm

The ratio is then repeated until the grid is fully activated. When I start painting in the shapes I use the color to find new patterns that begin emerging. When I am not in the mood to build a pattern on a grid I paint flowers or colorful piles of shapes that look like playground structures or dream machines.

Tearchain, 2005, wool felt, 122 x 183 cm

A list of subjects and themes both past and present: bright and pastel colors, club culture, neon lights, modernist and Art Deco shapes and forms, modern architecture, vintage fabric, shiny and metallic textures, abundance, death, obsession, joy, innocence, pattern, fashion, flowers, stripes, grids

Thank you for your support. -Melina Finkelstein May 19th, 2022

Melinafinkelstein.com
ig: @casamunizdesign @peaceindustryrugs