Melanie Fischer was born in 1969 in Philadelphia, PA. She received a BA with Distinction in art from Carleton College in Northfield, MN. From 1991 to 1992 she was an artist in residence at Carleton. In 1996 she established Hubbard Street Gallery in Chicago, and received a BFA from The Art Institute of Chicago. In 1997 she showed at Chicago's NFA Gallery and at Blumengarten in San Francisco. In 2000 she received a Charles G. Shaw award for excellence in art from Brooklyn College.