Melanie Baker was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio. She attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY, on a full merit scholarship, graduating in 1977 with a BFA. After raising three children on Long Island, she resumed her artistic career by attending graduate school. She received her MFA from Stony Brook University in 2001.
Her large charcoal and graphite drawings have been exhibited in many venues: solo exhibitions at Cristin Tierney and Roebling Hall, among others; and group exhibitions at the Brooklyn Museum, the Jersey City Museum, White Box, NYU Gallatin, the Nerman Museum, Platformart, Albany University and Wesleyan University.
Baker has received numerous awards and fellowships. She has twice been a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow, and in 2003 received the NYFA Prize, awarded across all disciplines. She has been a Sacatar Foundation Fellow, in 2004 and again in 2022. Other honors include residencies at Art Omi, Yaddo, Djerrassi, the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Ireland, Valparaiso in Spain, and LMCC’s Workspace Program. She was the Commencement speaker for the Stony Brook University Dept. of Art in May 2025.
Melanie Baker is represented by Cristin Tierney Gallery, New York, NY. She divides her time between Brooklyn, NY and Philadelphia.