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I completed my BFA at the University of Leeds in 1991 and went on to study for an MFA at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada under the tutelage of Jeff Wall. My work has been included in solo and group exhibitions in the UK and abroad including; Northern Gallery of Contemporary Art, Sunderland, Newlyn Art Gallery, Cynthia Broan Gallery, New York and independent spaces MOT, Keith Talent Gallery and Permanent Gallery, Brighton.
'These images are making me go a bit weird - sort of really bad, clichéd images and yet... yet... not. She was doing something with clichés themselves. I rarely use the word 'bold' and certainly never 'brave' to describe an artist's work but I had at least to look in my thesaurus to try and take me close to deciding what Melanie does. If you look too quickly you miss it. But if you give it time, what she is doing is amazing. Really out there and with subject matter that many artists just wouldn't go near. Brilliant.' Russell Herron, Journals 2008
‘Stidolph’s picture of a white horse and its foal has a strange intensity (due in part to its ethereal, washed out color-scheme) that refuses to be immediately characterized as "doing" this or that. The sincere beauty of the photo counterbalances the My Little Pony irony of the subject matter.’ ‘This show is ribbed for her pleasure’, Michael Paulson, NYArts Magazine, 2005
‘Stidolph distills an unexpected drama from low-key subjects into still images which range from landscape to portrait compositions. Working spontaneously in a documentary fashion, but with a medium format camera, Stidolph’s people, animals and places become quietly transformed into luminous, highly loaded moments.’ Alistair Robinson, Director, Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art, Sunderland, 2005
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