Nohomebody

Allyson Mellburg

October 5th-October 30th 2005

As our world grows smaller through the use of new products and technology, people find more and more ways not to look at one another, or themselves, in a natural way. We ingest and apply multiple chemicals to our bodies every day without much thought of the consequences for ourselves or our environment. Allyson Mellburg's drawings and prints convey the haunting realization of our actions in her on-going portrait series of physically mutated boys and girls. The drawings are both grotesque and beautiful, reeling you in with their fine line details, walnut-ink washes and sympathetic looks. Elephantitus-like mutations grow out of armpits and faces, hair comes alive and grows arms and tails that lovingly wrap around the heads of these sullen children. These characters look on, saddened by what's become of them but willingly unveil their deformities for you to investigate. They are products of their environment but there is a fierceness in their demeanor, one of unflinching pride. In October 2004, Allyson started the "Shampoo Girls", a series of drawings named after chemicals found in women's beauty products that are known to modify hormones. With names like "Ethyl of PVM", "Laureth", and "Sorbitan", she envisioned this modification as a physical mutation, making drawings that embody that notion. In keeping with the idea that we should think about the chemicals we use daily, Allyson uses only non-toxic (and as often as possible homemade) materials to make her drawings, prints, and sculptures. Allyson has exhibited at the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Branch Gallery, and is a member of Team Lump Gallery in Raleigh, NC. Her work was featured in the group drawing show "I Find You" at Cinders and her zines and art books have had a home on our bookshelf since we first discovered them.