About the Artist

Melissa Garden (yes, that really is her name,) is a sixth generation California native and Oakland resident, with degrees in illustration from the California College of Arts (& Crafts) and UC Santa Cruz. The core strength of Melissa’s work is her ability to skillfully translate the natural world’s diverse beauty and oddity, her subjects ranging from endangered heritage breed livestock, to rare hybrid tomatoes, to edible bugs.

Melissa’s broad range of skills has brought her an equally diverse range of clients from internationally recognized brands, to local tomato farmers, to Japanese biochemists.
When not focused on freelance illustration and/or design projects at The Compound Gallery & Studios, Melissa tends to her small forest of cacao trees and other neo-tropical plants growing in her Oakland home.

For design or illustration inquiries, to purchase prints, or to see a selection of Melissa’s work, please visit: melissagarden.com.