Melissa Cody Explained

Melissa Cody
Birth Place:No Water Mesa, Arizona
Nationality:American
Education:B.A., Institute of American Indian Arts
Known For:Textile art, Navajo weaving, Germantown Revival style
Spouse:Joshua Prince (1976–2015)

Melissa Cody (born 1983) is a Navajo textile artist from No Water Mesa, Arizona, United States. Her Germantown Revival style weavings are known for their bold colors and intricate three dimensional patterns. Cody maintains aspects of traditional Navajo tapestries, but also adds her own elements into her work. These elements range from personal tributes to pop culture references.[1]

Her tapestries have been described as "[…] deeply personal, beautifully crafted, powerfully expressive works of art that speak to her culture and generation."

Early life and education

Cody was born in 1983 in No Water Mesa, Arizona. She is a member of the Diné (Navajo) Nation and grew up on a Navajo Reservation in Leupp, Arizona and at times lived in Southern California and Texas.[2] [3] She currently resides in Long Beach, California.

Cody is a fourth generation textile artist who began weaving at the age of 5. She grew up watching her mother Lola Cody, her grandmother Martha Schultz and other family members work at the loom and was encouraged to challenge and explore her own capabilities on the loom.[4] [5]

Melissa Cody primarily works in the Germantown Revival style of weaving. This style is a traditional Navajo style of weaving that was created during a time of oppression, the Navajo Long Walk, that used wool from government issued wool blankets. Curators Besaw et al. explain that this style is known for its, "vibrant hues, diamond patterns, geometric forms and overlapping lines". Cody weaves on a traditional Navajo loom, which are all built by her father, using Germantown style wool yarn. She is known for incorporating traditional Germantown styles with modern elements in her tapestries. Her works also include Navajo symbols, personal references as well as pop culture references. Cody's tapestries have been credited as giving off a three dimensional illusion.

In 2007, Cody graduated from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico and received a B.A. in Studio Arts and Museum Studies. After college Cody interned at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, NM and at the National museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C.[6]

Artworks

Dopamine Regression – 2010

In this 70 x 48 in. textile, Cody uses brightly colored wool that is said to give off a three dimensional look.[7] According to the curators Besaw et al., Cody created this work to honor her father, as he struggles with Parkinson's disease. Besaw et al. further explain that the several black crosses represent her deep sorrow to his condition. The red cross at the top of the tapestry refers to the medical red cross, as well as the Navajo goddess, Spider Woman. This goddess is known for her strength, goodness and for teaching the art of weaving. Overall, this tapestry contains Navajo symbols and personal references.

Deep Brain Stimulation – 2011

Deep Brain Stimulation is held in a collection at the Minneapolis Institute of Art and maintains the Germantown Revival style with bright "eye dazzling designs".[8] With dimensions of 40 x 30 in. Cody uses intensely colored wool that creates rainbow like patterns. There are black and white crosses across the piece that symbolize the Navajo goddess, Spider Woman once again. The artwork's title is meant to pay tribute to her father, who has Parkinson's disease, as it refers to a neural treatment for the disease.

World Traveler – 2014

A selected work at the Garth Greenman gallery and part of the Stark Museum Navajo Weaving: Tradition and Trade exhibit, World Traveler is a 90x 48 in. wool textile piece.[9] Like the Germantown Revival style of weaving, Cody is said to create a "illusion of movement". According to curators Besaw et al., World Traveler "features a panel with sixteen concentric half-circles decorated with a checkerboard pattern" that gives a "psychedelic effect".

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Group exhibitions

Collections

Cody's work is included in:

Awards

See also

Notes and References

  1. Fauntleroy. Gussie. 1 Jan 2010. Groundbreakers: Moving On.. Native Peoples Magazine. 23. 36–41. EBSCOhost Education Source.
  2. Book: Art for a New Understanding: Native Voices, 1950s to Now. Besaw. Mindy N.. Hopkins. Candice. Well-Off-Man. Manuela. 2018. University of Arkansas Press. 978-1682260807. en.
  3. Web site: Melissa S. Cody. Soulé. Barbara. 2018-01-09. Native Arts and Cultures Foundation. en-US. 2020-02-01.
  4. Book: Besaw. Mindy N.. Art for a New Understanding: Native Voices, 1950s to Now. Hopkins. Candice. Well-Off-Man. Manuela. 2018. University of Arkansas Press. 978-1682260807. en.
  5. Web site: Clear Focus. Lovelace. Joyce. 20 July 2015. American Craft Council. 1 February 2020.
  6. Web site: Melissa Cody – Artists – Garth Greenan Gallery. www.garthgreenan.com. 2020-02-01.
  7. Web site: An Exhibit That Places Indigenous Artists Front and Center. Mock. Geoffrey. 28 Aug 2019. Duke Today. 2 Feb 2020.
  8. Web site: Deep Brain Stimulation, Melissa Cody ^ Minneapolis Institute of Art. collections.artsmia.org. 2020-02-05.
  9. Web site: World Traveler. 2014. Stark Museum of Art and The W.H. Stark House collections. 5 Feb 2020.
  10. Web site: Future Tradition: Melissa Cody Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. www.crafthouston.org. 2020-02-07.
  11. Web site: Àbadakone Continuous Fire Feu continuel. www.gallery.ca. en. 2020-02-07.
  12. Web site: December Artist-in-Residence: Melissa Cody. 2012-11-20. de Young. en. 2020-03-10.
  13. Web site: NDN NOW. Heard Museum. en-US. 2020-02-07.
  14. Web site: Rebecca Camacho Presents. www.rebeccacamacho.com. 2020-02-07.
  15. Web site: Nine 4 Ninety: Artists for a New Era. Museum of Northern Arizona. en-US. 2020-02-07.
  16. Web site: Self, Made. 2019-03-02. Exploratorium. en. 2020-02-07.
  17. Web site: Take a Journey of Identity in Self, Made at San Francisco's Exploratorium in 2019. San Francisco Travel. en. 2020-02-07.
  18. Web site: Color Riot! How Color Changed Navajo Textiles. Heard Museum. en-US. 2020-02-07.
  19. Web site: Interwoven . MASS Gallery. en-US. 2020-02-07.
  20. Web site: SITElines.2018: Casa tomada. sitesantafe.org. en-US. 2020-02-08.
  21. Web site: Navajo Nation Museum. 20 Oct 2018. www.facebook.com. en. 2020-02-08.
  22. Web site: Edgewater Reflections. 6 Feb 2018. www.facebook.com. 2020-02-08.
  23. Web site: Connective Tissue: New Approaches to Fiber in Contemporary Native Art > Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). en-US. 2020-02-08.
  24. Web site: Navajo Weaving: Tradition & Trade. Stark Museum of Art. en-US. 2020-02-08.
  25. Web site: Messengers 2012. 2012-07-01. Rainmaker Gallery. en-GB. 2020-02-08.
  26. Web site: A Turning Point: Navajo Weaving in the Late 20th Century. heard.org. 2020-02-08.
  27. Web site: Past Exhibits. Heard Museum. en-US. 2020-02-08.
  28. Web site: Deep Brain Stimulation, Melissa Cody ^ Minneapolis Institute of Art. collections.artsmia.org. 2020-02-08.
  29. Web site: Melissa Cody. Heard Museum ARGUS.net (Final). en. 2020-02-14.

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