MELISSA DI MENNA

Melissa Di Menna lives and works in Montreal, and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design Art with a Minor in Film Animation. Although her practice mainly combines printmaking, illustration and graphic design, she is also a musician and composer. This is her first exploration in interac- tive installation.
Life experiences shape our individual foundations. I am inspired by daily observations that become part of a mental database, which I draw from in the construction of my work. Everything I create derives from encounters seen or imagined that become juxtaposed through idiosyncratic connections. In order to reshape my gathered thoughts, I borrow images, modify them, and later reinterpret them through collage and overlays to create composite images. The iconic imagery in my work serves to conjure a certain nostalgic feeling.
In the hypervisual reality in which we live, one tends to forget the other human senses, such as smell. I question the links between specific scents and the images they can trigger, and whether or not scent can amplify or even reshape memories. In this project, I explore the ways in which this olfactory synesthesia can differ from one person to the next. This call to the body further invites engagement while still indicating our individuality.