Melissa Gerleve is an artist and educator born (1985) and raised on the outskirts of Chicago. She graduated with a Bs.Ed from Northern Illinois University with a concentration in painting. For seven years, she has worked with the Chicago Public Schools, and is currently working towards building an Arts Magnet program for 9th-12 grade students. She enjoys working collaboratively to create, or inspire place-based work. Her personal work focuses on mixed media and is often inspired by found objects, mementos, small collections, or the deconstruction and reconstruction of old works