Jim Melchert has contributed to the discourse among art makers in many capacities. He is primarily known as a ceramist with an eye for conceptual art. His current investigation of ceramic tile as an aesthetic medium stems from his travels in countries along the Mediterranean coast from the late ‘70s on. His art work can be found in collections at the Museum of Art and Design in New York, the Victoria & Albert in London, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, the Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art among others. He lives and maintains a studio in Oakland.