Melissa Mercier

Bio:
Melissa Mercier is a fine art photographer based in Vancouver, Canada. After a move from her native Québec to Toronto, Melissa then studied photography at Vancouver's Langara College and worked under photographer Anthony Redpath.

Artist Statement:
It's about control. Levels of perfection and imperfection are not acceptable in Melissa's world - immaculacy is the only option. Only through her photographs does she have complete control over finality. Ultimately her work is a study of her own personality. Somewhat of a claustrophobe and a self proclaimed obsessive compulsive, she photographs images that deal with our uncontrollable behaviour. These involuntary characteristics can be as simple as blinking or inhaling, but more specifically are those that manifest themselves as obsessive. Through her work she allows breathing room, as if to remedy the suffering while calling attention to the cause. She is not the least bit embarrassed about these personality traits, in fact she celebrates them. Not unlike Andreas Gurksky, Melissa's mission is a call to arms for all of the visually compelled and obsessed. "I hope through my images, people will find a positive solution" states Mercier.  In the series "Irrational Fear of Confine...