About
Biography
Melissa Dorn is a Milwaukee artist obsessed with industrial mop heads, feminism, and labor. Her sculpture, paintings, and installations directly and indirectly utilize craft, pulling at threads of her history, midwesterness, and the ordinary.
Selected exhibitions: Sarah Ball Allis Art Museum, Charles Allis Art Museum; Soft Power, Minneapolis College of Art and Design Concourse Gallery, 3 Faces of Eve, 5 Points Gallery; Made in Paint, The Sam & Adele Golden Gallery; Existing in Thought, Scout Gallery; Tension in the Ordinary, James May Gallery; Mobile Home, Var Gallery; Infauxstructure, Opalka Gallery, Sage College; The Book Club: What Would We Do With Lynne Tillman, Frank Juarez Gallery; Mopping Up, Frank Juarez Gallery; The Jump Off, Urban Institute for Contemporary Art; Detroit Biennale, Museum of New Art; Wisconsin Artists Biennial, Museum of Wisconsin Art; Preservatif, Stockholm Gallery; Forward 2014, Charles Allis Art Museum; Up, Down!, River Edge Gallery; Schematic, UW-Sheboygan; Eight Counties, John Michael Kohler Arts Center; Art Chicago and Aqua Art Miami, Hotcakes Gallery.
Select collections: Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel; Northwestern Mutual; Mandel Group; UW Hospital and Clinics; Milwaukee Area Technical College.
Dorn earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design.
Download BIO
Selected Solo and Two Person Exhibitions
2024
Fem-utility Closet, IA&A at Hillyer, Washington, DC
Fem-utility Closet: Louise, Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts (LHUCA), Lubbock, TX
2021
Dear Ruth, The Everyday Feminist, Saint Kate, Milwaukee, WI
Pulling at Strands: History, Feminism & the Everyday, Arts@Large, Milwaukee, WI
2019
Mobile Home, Var Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
The Everyday Feminist: Fine China, Plock Art Gallery, Brookfield, WI
2018
The Everyday Feminist, UW-Madison Union Gallery, Madison, WI
Mopping Up: New Works by Melissa Dorn, Frank Juarez Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Mopping Up, Yardstick, Algoma, WI
2016
Melissa Dorn Richards: New Works, Clair E. Smith Gallery, Barrington, IL
2015
Melissa Dorn Richards: Serial Influences, Gallerie M-Intercontinental, Milwaukee, WI
2014
New Works, Leenhouts Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2013
Moving Mountains, Frank Juarez Gallery, Sheboygan, WI
Up, Down!, River Edge Gallery, Thiensville, WI
Coal Piles, Mercy Hill Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2011
Draw, Paint, Carve, EFFJAY PROJEKTS, Sheboygan, WI
2010
New Works, Gallerie M, Intercontinental, Milwaukee, WI
2009
Impromptu, Cedar Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2006
Melissa Dorn Richards, Reuss Federal Building, Milwaukee, WI
Selected Group Exhibitions
2025
more waiting – just a little bit closer, Heaven Gallery, Chicago, IL
Fem-utility Closet: Cohabitate, Charlotte Street Foundation, Kansas City, MO
2024
Soft Structures, Tooth + Nail Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Indiana Green Invitational, Thelma Sadoff Center for the Arts, Fond du Lac, WI
2023
Sarah Ball Allis Art Museum, Charles Allis Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
Absurdity: In Dada We Trust, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL
Layers-Material and Meaning, SITE:Brooklyn Gallery, Online Curated by Bridget Donlon
Down Low, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
Sculpture: Motley Cruise, ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL
From This Point Forward: An Exhibition of MIAD Alumni, Gallery at the Ave, Milwaukee, WI
2022
Soft Power, Minneapolis College of Art and Design Concourse Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
Roe v. Wade: A Conversation Through Art, newARTspace, De Pere, WI
3 Faces of Eve, 5 Points Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
TMA Contemporary, Trout Museum of Art, Appleton, WI
2021
Flat Files 2021, Collar Works, Troy, NY
46 Artists for America’s First Ladies, Art + Literature Lab, Madison, WI
Constant Practice, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, Milwaukee, WI
2020
Made in Paint, The Sam & Adele Golden Gallery, New Berlin, NY
The Sarah Ball Allis Art Museum, Charles Allis Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
Existing in Thought, Scout Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Tension in the Ordinary, James May Gallery, Algoma, WI
2019
Infauxstructure, Opalka Gallery, Sage College, Albany, NY
Indiana Green, Cedarburg Cultural Center, Cedarburg, WI
(un)Told Stories, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD
Body of Work, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, Milwaukee, WI
39th Annual Secura Fine Arts Exhibition, The Trout Museum of Art, Appleton, WI
MKE Influencers, VarWest Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
The Place of the Artist, The Milwaukee Jewish Artists’ Laboratory, Milwaukee, WI
2018
The Book Club: What Would We Do With Lynne Tillman, Frank Juarez Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Diego & Frida Exhibition, Latino Arts, Milwaukee, WI
Contemporary Abstract Artists: The Female Perspective, Gallery of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, WI
Bricks, Books, & Other Things, Wauwatosa Public Library, Wauwatosa, WI
MIAD Faculty Exhibition, Frederick Layton Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2017
The Jump Off, Urban Institute for Contemporary Art (UICA), Grand Rapids, MI
MARN Mentor/Mentee Exhibition, Var Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
FJG Inaugural Exhibition, Frank Juarez Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Eruption, Madison Public Library, Madison, WI
2016
Wisconsin Artists Biennial, Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, WI
Detroit Biennale, Museum of New Art, Armada, MI
Indiana Green: Then/Now, UW-Sheboygan, Sheboygan, WI
CultureJam MKE, Redline, Milwaukee, WI
Bachman’s Warbler, Gallery 226, Port Washington, WI
30 x 30 x 30, Var Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Current Contours, Arts Mill, Grafton, WI
Origin 8, Pfister Pop-Up Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Eruption, Var Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
2015
Error As Architecture: A Study of Play and Happenstance, Jazz
Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Eruption, Racine Arts Council, Racine, WI
Gallery Artists’ Group Show, Frank Juarez Gallery, Sheboygan, WI
Preservatif, Marshall Arts Gallery, Memphis, TN
2014
Forward 2014, Charles Allis Museum, Milwaukee, WI
Kinetic Hues, The David Adler Music and Art Center, Libertyville, IL
Abstract Conversations, Gallery 224, Port Washington, WI
Indiana Green, Cedarburg Cultural Center, Cedarburg, WI
Branding Creativity, UW-Parkside, Kenosha, WI
Preservatif, Milwaukee, WI
2013
Salt, ArtPrize, Grand Rapids, MI
Memories in the Making, St. Johnʼs on the Lake, Milwaukee, WI
2012
Schemata, UW-Sheboygan, WI
SRAM pART Project, Cedar Lake Theatre, New York, NY
The Abstract Show, Brickton Art Center, Park Ridge, IL
Indiana Green, EFFJAY PROJEKTS Gallery, Sheboygan, WI
Abstraction: The Language of Art, Cedarburg Cultural Center, WI
2011
Hidden River Art Festival, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Brookfield, WI
ArtMail Milwaukee, Online
Things on Strings, Milwaukee Artist Resource Network (MARN), Milwaukee, WI
Indiana Green, Juarez Invitational, Sheboygan, WI
Best of Open Canvas, Pritzlaff Building, Milwaukee, WI
2010
Indiana Green, Juarez Invitational, Sheboygan, WI
Milwaukee Artist Marketplace, Milwaukee Art Museum, WI
2008
Around the Coyote Festival, Chicago, IL
Hidden River Art Festival, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Brookfield, WI
2007
Aqua Miami, Hotcakes Gallery, Miami, FL
Hidden River Art Festival, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Brookfield, WI
Artist Marketplace, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
Paradise Remixed, Cream City Collectives, Milwaukee, WI
2006
Art Chicago, Hotcakes Gallery, Chicago, IL
Hidden River Art Festival, Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts, Brookfield, WI
Around the Coyote Fall and Winter Festival, Chicago, IL
Curatorʼs Choice Exhibition, Around the Coyote Winter Festival, Chicago, IL
Artist Marketplace, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
2005
Eight Counties, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, WI
Company Man, Milwaukee Artist Resource Network, Milwaukee, WI
Artist Marketplace, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI
ArtSplash, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, Milwaukee, WI
Corporate Collections
Arts@ Large
Littler Mendelson
Northwestern Mutual
Mandel Group
Marcus Corporation’s Saint Kate Arts Hotel
Milwaukee Area Technical College
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Tax-Air
West Bend Mutual Insurance
Awards/Grants/Residencies
2024 Villa Terrace Art Museum Artist Residency, Milwaukee, WI
2022 Finalist Mary L. Nohl Established Artist Fellowship, jurors: Jadine Collingwood, Thomas James, Kimi Kitada
Conversations in Practice Residency, Oxbow School of Art & Artists’ Residency
Artist in Residence, Elmwood Elementary, New Berlin, WI
2019 The Sam and Adele Golden Foundation for the Arts Residency
2017 Mary L. Nohl Suitcase Fund Award
2016 Finalist Mary L. Nohl Established Artist Fellowship
2014 Artist in Residence, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT
2013 Mary L. Nohl Suitcase Fund Award
2011 Artist in Residence, Mandel Group Creative Studio, directed by Plaid Tuba, Milwaukee, WI
2007 Jurorsʼ Choice Award, Hidden River Festival, Brookfield, WI
2006 Curatorʼs Choice Exhibition, Around the Coyote Winter Festival, Chicago, IL
2003 Wisconsin Arts Board Community Collaboration Grant
Bibliography
2023
A New Vision: A Review of Milwaukee’s Sarah Ball Allis Art Museum, New City Art
Spotlight on Women at Sarah Ball Allis Art Museum, Shepherd Express
2020
Made In Paint, Color Catalog, The Sam & Adele Golden Gallery
2018
Melissa Dorn Richards, Praxis Interview Magazine, Yale Radio
Artful Investigation, M Magazine, January 2018
Mopping Up, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Tap, January 14, 2018
Melissa Dorn Richards “Mopping Up” at Frank Juarez Gallery, Shepherd Express, January 16, 2018
Mopping Up the World, Urban Milwaukee, February 3, 2018
Mopping Up, Color Catalog, Frank Juarez Gallery
2016
2016 Wisconsin Artists Biennial, Color Catalog, Wisconsin Visual Artists
Indiana Green: Then/Now, Color Catalog, Frank Juarez Gallery
Bachman’s Warbler, Color Catalog, Gallery 224
2015
Volume 29, Studio Visit Magazine V. 29, pp. 144-145
2014
Featured on Structure and Imagery, A Contemporary Art Blog by Paul Benke
Indiana Green 5th Year Anniversary, Color Catalog, Frank Juarez Gallery
2013
“Up and Close – Their Art. Their Stories.” directed by Kidder Films, produced in association with the Frank Juarez Gallery
Book Cover, Masquerades & Misdemeanors, Hartford Avenue Poets
Select Teaching Artist/Activities
2024
Adjunct Associate Professor, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
2023
Interim Full-Time Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
2022
Interim Full-Time Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
2021
Interim Full-Time Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist in Residence, Arts@Large
2020
Interim Full-Time Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
2019
Community Self Care Event!, Opalka Gallery, Sage College, Albany, NY
Co-Presenter, The Everyday Feminist: Telling Stories, University of South Dakota’s Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies Research Conference
Adjunct Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Milwaukee, WI
2018
Adjunct Faculty, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Milwaukee, WI
ImagineMKE 2027, Committee Member
2017
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
Inside Job Panel Discussion, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Grafton, WI
2016
Instructor, Working in a Series, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Artist Educator, Arts@Large
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Sheboygan, WI
Juror, 30 x 30 x 30, Var Gallery & Studios, Milwaukee, WI
Board Member & Programming Committee Chair, ArtWorks for Milwaukee
Advisory Board Co-Chair, Milwaukee Artist Resource Network
2015
Instructor, Humor in Abstraction, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Visiting Artist, Milwaukee Art Museum
Demonstration, Nassco Tradeshow
Presenter, Grant Writing Unmasked, MarKEt
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Sheboygan, WI
Presenter, Artist Entrepreneurship, Walker’s Point Center for the Arts, Milwaukee, WI
Board Member, ArtWorks for Milwaukee
Advisory Board Co-Chair, Milwaukee Artist Resource Network
2014
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Cedarburg, WI
Advisory Board Co-Chair, Milwaukee Artist Resource Network
2013
Artist Talk, Wisconsin Visual Artists
Co-Curator, Indiana Green, Sheboygan, WI
2012
Gallery Talk, UW-Sheboygan
Co-Chair Creative Milwaukee at Work Conference
Artist Talk, Boston Lofts, Milwaukee
2011
Studio Tour/Talk, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Panelist Arts Panel, Young Nonprofit Professionals Network, Milwaukee
2008
Instructor, Humor in Abstraction, Adult painting workshop
Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts
2006
Lead Artist, ArtWorks for Milwaukee
Commissioned by Harley Davidson-Milwaukee to create a mural with apprentices (ages 16-18) commemorating 9-11 and Pearl Harbor.
Resident Artist, Arts@Large
Created self-portrait ceramic tiles with students (ages 5-13) at Milwaukee Sign Language School for an installation at Childrenʼs Court.
2005
Resident Artist, Gaenslen School Summer Camp
Worked with 80 students creating 300 clay bowls for the Empty Bowls project.
Resident Artist, Arts@Large
Explored paint, color and movement with students with autism at Jackie Robison Middle School.
2002-2003
Resident Artist, Badger Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired
Created an outdoor mosaic art project with recreation program members, awarded the Wisconsin Arts Board Community Collaboration Grant.
Education
1993-1996 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
Download CV
View Artist Statement