Melanie Oliva shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Melanie, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: Have you stood up for someone when it cost you something?
When I worked in marketing, I stood up for my team if I observed unfair treatment or unrealistic expectations being imposed. In general, this was not well-received because I was getting in the way. People don’t like to be called out for treating someone unfairly or being told a turnaround time is unrealistic when they’ve already promised it to the client. Those actions caused friction, but I would’ve felt worse if I hadn’t spoken up.
My art practice is centered around social and environmental justice, so standing up for living beings is the goal of every project. It’s cost me a sense of safety at times, like when hunters threatened me online after I worked towards stopping the 2015 FWC Florida Black Bear hunt (which the developer-led FWC has scheduled to happen again in December 2025, to clear the way for more development!)
Most recently, standing up for Yellow-crowned Night Herons in Biscayne Park, FL, has cost me my peace. Around thirty 100-year-old trees were cut down without expert wildlife inspections and I witnessed two healthy trees containing heron nests being chopped down in front of my house, without notice (I painted one heron who lost her nest). Our small municipality used to be governed in a way where our bird sanctuary status was upheld, but lately things have changed. Residents are not being listened to, especially women. Trump’s fascist style seems to be trickling down to every governing body and some power-hungry people feel emboldened. Standing up for what is right is crucial now more than ever – especially for those of us who are privileged and may not be targeted due to skin color.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a Miami artist activist and I advocate for Earth and her inhabitants through paintings, collaboration, design, writing – basically any tool I have at my disposal!
I teach with the Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami and private lessons to help teens prepare their portfolios for high school or college. I was recently awarded an Oolite Arts Ellies Creator Award which will fund two workshops to help make applying to art colleges more accessible for local teens, in September 2025 and January 2026.
I’m also now represented by ARRAE Gallery in Coconut Grove and my work is currently on display in their inaugural collection.
On the flip side, the fact that Trump and DeSantis are pulling funding for the arts is greatly affecting me and fellow artists. I recently lost a job in Pembroke Pines for a teen art program I had built from the ground up, which greatly helped some neurodivergent students make significant progress. Another class of mine has been eliminated due to federal and state arts funding cuts as well. Artists spoke up when Miami-Dade was going to slash the Department of Cultural Affairs budget by half, and our Mayor listened. Let’s all use our art, voices and tools to stop the current administration from doing more horrible things. The only way is people power!
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I was a sensitive artist kid who cared deeply about all living beings and who wanted to wear the same pink clothes every day like a uniform.
I’ve basically come back full circle!
I tried to fit into the corporate world for many years as a Creative Director, but I never felt like myself in that cutthroat environment. For the last ten years, I’ve delved back into fine art and advocacy. I wear mostly pink or coral-colored clothing to match my After-image Series, and I try to only buy clothes from the thrift shop or wear what I already own. After all, we have enough to clothe the next six generations and it’s one of the largest pollutants on Earth!
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
Sometimes the fear of not being liked keeps me from voicing my truth.
However, I’ve found that when you’re truly yourself, you find your people. When you speak truth to power, change occurs. After my artist activist friend Alessandra Mondolfi passed away earlier this year, I’ve been honoring her by being brutally honest and fearless like she was. When people see you being authentic and doing something they’re afraid of doing, it helps them feel more comfortable to get involved!
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
Very few people agree with me when I say that all animals are sentient and equally deserving of life. Speciesism is so prevalent in our society because of religion, which largely preaches that the human species has dominion over all other animals. This is so very wrong.
Not only are we causing needless suffering to our fellow Earth-dwellers, but we also need to adapt to our warming environment by eliminating factory farming, in tandem with cutting our carbon emissions. There’s enough grain to feed all humans, but most feeds the animals humans eat. It also takes around 700 gallons of water to produce just one hamburger. Eating animals causes significant greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, habitat loss and pollution.
Yet, humans do not want to change their habits and taste is king, even though there are tons of great plant-based options and it’s easier than ever to go vegan! We’re just not evolving fast enough to get us out of this mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. We need to focus on resiliency and mitigation because it’s clear we can’t stop ourselves.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
Speciesism is one of the root causes for injustice. It ties directly to the objectification and oppression of women and marginalized people, reinforcing the “othering” of bodies that are not our own. It also guides how corporations run their factory farms, which pollute marginalized communities.
Veganism is social justice and environmental justice. This is what I hope my art will help people understand. Empathy is a muscle. USE IT!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://melanieoliva.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/melanieolivaartist
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/moliva2
Image Credits
Sofia Kaye Rose
