Today a few of us took a small lunchtime art field trip to the gallery and studio of Marianist Brother Mel Meyer (more information here). He works in every medium imaginable and seems to be equally skilled in all of them — oil, watercolor, sculpture, mixed media with found objects, metal work (including furniture!)…he even makes his own paper. The spectrum of his work was almost unfathomable. Above you can somewhat see some of his large scale metal sculptures. These were installed all over the grounds and hung from tree branches. It was breezy today, so the kinetic pieces creaked, clanked, and chimed softly as we wandered around. Inside he had some tiny sculptures that hang on the wall…big, beautiful paintings in stunning colors…hand-pressed paper pieces…driftwood sculptures…he had it all. But the amazing thing is that, no matter what the medium, each piece distinctly spoke with his voice.

Bonus: we also got to look around his studio and workshop. Believe it or not, this place is tucked away on the grounds of a Catholic high school campus.

Look closely…he’s eating some homemade soup that a friend of his had dropped off earlier. His curator said that it was the highlight of his day. He’s 85 years old and going strong.

Oh yes, he works with stained glass also. 

Below is a metal sculpture that represents the five foolish virgins from the parable of the ten virgins. 

I’m sorry, but it made me laugh.

The gallery is such a wonderful space and I don’t have a photo that does it justice. 

It even has its own tiny chapel. 

 

Room after room, we just soaked in beauty, religious relics and funky colors.

It was such a breath of fresh air. But this isn’t the first time we’ve been inspired by this man. His work can be found in almost all of our hospitals — our chapels in particular. So it was so exciting to see the source of the inspiration. What a vibrant, creative, and happy place. I didn’t want to leave.