Change is continuity is growth,…
As a painter, I move fluidly between abstraction and realism, exploring transformation, impermanence, and emotional memory. From 2007 to 2019, I engaged architectural forms—fragmented or whole—as central motifs. These imagined structures, often tethered by roots yet unsupported, reflected my own experience: unanchored, transient, and searching. They spoke to resilience and vulnerability in equal measure.
My current body of work turns toward intimacy and remembrance. I paint objects that carry the imprint of those I’ve lost—mementos imbued with their spirit and story. Consolation Flowers is a series of observational oil paintings of funerary arrangements from my loved ones, rendered in thick impasto. In these studies, I find spaces for reflection and discovery. As I work, decaying petals often seem to return to life, revealing unexpected beauty and emotional resonance. Each painting becomes an opportunity to honor the enduring presence of memory and love.
I earned my Master of Fine Arts from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and I studied, postgraduate in Calcutta, India, and Paris, France. My work was published by the University of Pennsylvania, the Artblog and New American Paintings. I’ve been included in exhibitions at Arcadia University, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, and Swartz Gallery in Philadelphia. I was represented by Nelson Macker Fine Art in NY. My work is in numerous private collections in the United States and Canada.
CV
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2025
Emerging Blooms, Khawam Gallery, East Hanover, NJ
Art of the Flower, Philadelphia Sketch Club, PA
2024
Life in Color, Sitar Gallery, Washington, DC
Converge, Bridgette Maher Gallery, Philadelphia
Celebrating Art and Life, Perelman Building, University of Pennsylvania
2021
Near Wild Heaven, SoundPlex, NJ (solo)
2019
Heavenly Places, Votta Hall, Rowan College at Burlington County (solo)
2018
Faculty Exhibition, Rowan College at Burlington County
2015
Faculty Exhibition, Camden County College, NJ
2013
Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2011
Faculty Exhibition, Camden County College, NJ
Ballet X, Group exhibition, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2009
You don’t have to go anywhere, PII Gallery, Philadelphia, PA (solo)
Teeth, Pageant Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Back on your Feet, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2008
Emerging Artists from New York to California, Nelson Macker Fine Art, New York
My Many Homes, PII Gallery, Philadelphia, PA (solo)
Seven Painters, Centennial Gallery, The Haverford School, PA
2007
Projected Spaces, collaborative project with filmmaker, Ish Klein in conjunction with F.U.E.L. Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Points of Departure: Inner and Outer Journeys in Contemporary Art, Fox Gallery, University of Pennsylvania
Spirit Wind Series, Collaborative Performance with Headlong Dance Company, Philadelphia, PA
2006
Faculty Exhibition, Camden County College, NJ
US Artists Exhibition, represented by Schwarz Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Caramoor Art Fair, represented by Nelson Macker Fine Art, NY
2005
Works on Paper, Arcadia University, Juror, Cornelia Butler, Chief Curator of Drawings and Prints, MoMA, NY
Drawing to Recall, Nelson Macker Fine Art, New York (solo)
Sea and Be Seen, Nelson Macker Fine Art, NY
Paintings of Paris, Afif Gallery, Philadelphia, PA (solo)
Crushed Crushes, ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL
Dream Relief, Darius Gallery, Philadelphia (solo)
PUBLICATIONS/REVIEWS
2024 Catholic Artist Connection, Issue #443.
https://catholicartistconnection.com/blog/jessica-puma
2020 NJ PBS, “NJ TV Learning Live.” Aired April 20, 2020. https://www.njtvonline.org/programs/njtv- learning-live/one-point-perspective-jessica-melchiorre-fifth-grade-c3phez/
2013 Colin Kerrigan, Philly.com. “Open House; Bonnie and Paul in Pennsport,” http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/home_and_design/Open-House-Bonnie-and-Paul.html
2009 Liz Abrams-Morley, Necessary Turns, Word Press.
2008 Strauss, Robert. “A Unique Take on City Scapes” Chadds Ford Post, March 20-26
2007 Naomi Beckwith & Lilianna Milkova. “On Memory, Sites, Migrations and Maps” from Points of Departure: Inner and Outer Journeys in Contemporary Art, Univ. of Pennsylvania
2006 Niv, Sharon. “Art Smart,” The Qbix Gallery Fine Arts Magazine, Issue Three, Volume 1, Winter
2005 Libby Rosoff & Roberta Fallon. “Paris by Puma – Nice View,” The Artblog, August 25
2005 New American Paintings, 57th Edition, April