Melissa Moore

Melissa Moore is a photographer, visual artist and arts educator whose long relationship with Hornby Island has played an important role in her creative life. She first came to Hornby in 1999, drawn by the island’s hand-built architecture, landscape and unconventional character, and returned from London repeatedly for extended stays.

Those years inspired Land Ends, a photographic exploration of Hornby combining landscape, still life and performative images. Rather than documenting the island literally, Melissa sought to capture something of its atmosphere, ecology and sense of place. Published as a monograph by Skira in 2013, Land Ends has been exhibited internationally.

Melissa studied at Manchester Metropolitan University and Kunstuniversität Linz in Austria before completing an MA in Photography at London’s Royal College of Art. Alongside her artistic practice, she developed extensive experience in arts education and administration, including serving as Course Director at London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, and teaching at the Architectural Association School of Architecture.

Her later artistic practice has continued to explore our relationship with place and the natural world, particularly trees, forests and the intersection of nature and human activity.

After more than two decades of returning to Hornby, Melissa made the island home. She brought her experience as an artist, educator and arts administrator to Hornby Arts, becoming Executive Director at a pivotal time as the new Arts Centre opened its doors and began a new chapter of exhibitions, programming and community arts.