Melanie Reim, a longtime subscriber and contributor, left her post as Associate Dean of the School of Art and Design, Professor and after 15 years as the chair of the MFA Illustration program at FIT NYC [Fashion Institute of Technology/SUNY]. Now that she has so much extra time, she offers life drawing at her mid-town NYC studio. She recently wrote and illustrated a book, Different & the Same, My Drawings and Stories of Women Around the World, published by Sketcher Press (the imprint of Gabi Campinario, founder of the global organization, Urban Sketchers). The book’s focus is on Reim’s longtime reportage on women while on location. With that in mind, we reached out to her as a representative for Women’s History Month for this email interview. 

Peggy Roalf: Do you remember the first art book you ever purchased? Why did it catch your attention?

Melanie Reim: I can venture a guess that it was a Norman Rockwell book. It was his capturing the slices of everyday life that appealed to me. As I found my artistic voice, it was an Egon Schiele book that truly started me on building my library.

PR: Please describe your library to our readers.

MR: I live in a studio apartment in NYC, so, in a way, the whole space is a collection of libraries. The majority is now housed in built-in bookcases, but there are also mini collections under, on top of, and in-between tables! I also keep a modest library in my studio that has a staple of books for projects that I am working on 

PR: What went into your choice of bookcases — any research? Any seen and envied among friends and colleagues? 

MR: In the early years, I did what many respectable New Yorkers did: culled storage from flea markets, sidewalk castaways and even bartered with neighbors. As my collection grew, I decided to have built-ins constructed. They were modeled after offices that I worked in, artist studios that I visited and print shops that I took classes in.

PR: Please share with the readers some ideas about organizing all the different kinds of books and objects your library.

MR: I discussed with friends who knew me well from my various walks of life—my freelance design mentors and colleagues, my illustrator friends, my figure drawing and reportage posse. All of the conversations led me to design a space that had shelves for large, heavy books, medium height shelves, a short space for small books and postcards that I would take on location with me as for reference and spaces to house drawing boards, and canvases. I keep my books in sections: master artists, draftsmen and painters, art movements, printmaking, crafts, photography, folk art, reportage, travel. The monographs used to be alphabetical, but as it goes with age, the shelves started to sag and I re-shuffled to get them upright again, based on weight. Though not as logical, I still know where they all are. 

PR: How do you maintain your library? For example, do you periodically take it apart and reorganize, or something along those lines?

MR: Even after all of these years, I never tire of looking at my library, but as my projects and focus changes, I sometimes shift what books are closest to me. There is a comfort in having my books and my sketchbooks within arm’s reach (studio apartment living!)

PR: Do you ever weed out volumes that you feel you are done with?

MR: ACK! The idea of ever having to part with a book is so painful—but I have done it. 

PR: What do you do when you run out of shelf space?

MR: I love donating books to former students, especially as they are launching their own studios. One of my favorite “weed-outs” was engaging the FIT Art and Design Faculty (when I was Associate Dean at FIT), in a “Book Giveaway." We all purged our libraries not knowing if students still looked at books, but the pictures tell the story (above and below). Gratifying barely describes the feelings that flowed out of that day as we observed the students starting their own libraries

PR: Have you ever had to move your library? What are the best and worst things about moving this kind of collection?

MR: I’m not going to tell you how long I’ve lived in NY, but nope, never had to move it though I do have a final donation plan in place.

PR: Is there anything you might want to include about favorite libraries for doing research over the years? 

MR: The best kept secrets are the libraries in our museums the world over. With a respectful ask, one can access most of them and find hidden gems for research on book, theses, and special projects. 

PR: Do you consider being a bibliophile a form of madness?

MR: An incurable, delightful affliction that I would not change for anything.

 Melanie Reim is an award-winning illustrator and multi-disciplinary artist with a sketchbook never far from her side. Post retirement from FIT, NYC, she has returned to her love for drawing the figure. Reim’s NYC studio has become a hub for workshops and for drawing from the model when not creating her own works. Interested? Look for Under 5 on her website.

In June 2023, Reim’s first monograph, Different & the Same, My Stories and Drawings of Women Around the World, was published by Sketcher Press. Later that year, she was an artist in residence at A.I.R Vallauris, France. 

In addition to a growing exhibition record, inclusive of several solo shows, her work appears in articles and books about illustration and reportage. Her client list includes US Air Force and US Air Force Art Collection, Pentagon, Washington, DC, Artist in Residence, Cincinnati Zoo, FIT Hong Kong Factory reportage, Artist in Residence, Manchester Metropolitan University, and NHK Japan TV, Women’s March on Washington. 

Website:
www.melaniereimart.com

IG : @melreim  
https://www.instagram.com/melreim/

Bluesky Social: 
@melaniereim.bsky.social

FB: Melanie Reim 
https://www.facebook.com/melanie.reim.5

Linked In: Melanie Reim 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-reim-8b903012/