Currently based in Philadelphia, Victoria Ahmadizadeh Melendez (b. 1988) grew up in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley as the first generation of her family in the U.S. The diverse perspectives of her Persian and Puerto Rican heritage inspire her multidisciplinary ethos. She combines poetry and prose with images, glass objects and neon signage to create layered experiences for the viewer. These installations touch upon themes of desire, personal transformation, and a longing to find magic amid a culture of repetition for survival.
Ahmadizadeh Melendez has been a professional glassworker for over 13 years, a path that has led her to artist residencies at Pilchuck Glass School, The Creative Glass Center of America, MASS MoCA, STARworks Glass Lab, and the UTAG Glass and Neon Studios. Her work has been shown internationally at several venues, most notably in Young Glass, a once-per-decade exhibition featuring rising international glass artists under 35. Domestically she recently exhibited at Delaware Contemporary in Wilmington, Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh and UrbanGlass in Brooklyn. Her sculptures are included in New Glass Review #33 and #38, publications of The Corning Museum of Glass.
A contributing writer to Glass: The UrbanGlass Art Quarterly and GAS News, Ahmadizadeh Melendez is passionate about educating others on using glass as an artistic medium. She is currently faculty at Tyler School of Art and Architecture, from which she received her BFA in Glass. She holds an MFA in Craft/Material Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University.
