Melissa Knowles
PHOTOGRAPHER, EDUCATOR &
ARTS FOR HEALTH SPECIALIST
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In the quiet rhythm of the lighthouse keeper’s life, there’s a patient tending to the light, ensuring it shines brightly for those looking, illuminating what is often unseen. For me, photography is much the same: a steady act of attention that isn't only about creativity — it is also a powerful tool for healing and connection. I recall what Henri Cartier-Bresson once said about David "Chim" Seymour's use of the camera as though a doctor using his stethoscope, diagnosing the state of the heart. "People aren't seen just because they are in a particular physical space; something must happen, collectively, for people to be seen," says the Reverend Ben McBride, the radical belonging activist and author. ​The camera can be this 'something,' pointing us towards an intelligent heart that helps us live, and give, love.
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I’m Melissa Blythe Knowles, an English photographer and teaching artist living on Martha's Vineyard. I made home here with my late partner, Geordie Gude—a harmonica player whose melodies and rhythms weaved their way into my life and heart—and our spirited Aussie Scout. Geordie was, and still is, a guiding light in my life. He taught me how to adventure inwards, how to listen with intent, and how to love whole-heartedly. He passed away on November 27, 2024, but his spirit, his music, his lessons, and his love continue to shape both my life and my work.
I began my training with Dr. John Diamond, a pioneering figure in holistic healing and creativity, who said “Imagine yourself: a photographer takes an interest in you, photographs you, relates to you, and you to them. Photographs can be made with a healing intention, used to change people so that neither the photographer nor the person being photographed is the same again.” So much depends on how we see things. As the Irish poet and philosopher John O’Donohue once said, "More often than not, the style of gaze determines what we see." There are many things near us that we never notice simply because of how we see. The way we look at things has a huge influence on what becomes visible to us. If one becomes stuck in a certain narrow, predictable, or habitual way of seeing, the outside light cannot bring color into one’s life. Each of us is responsible for how we see, and how we see determines what we see.​​​
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In the end, I believe we are all keepers of light—those who bring light to one another, to the world around us, and to ourselves. Photography is my way of tending that light.
Light Work...
Families & Weddings
My joie de vivre lies in photographing families, sensitively and beautifully reflecting those fleeting moments in your lives. I offer family, engagement, and small wedding packages, along with cost-sensitive options for locals.
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During our sessions, I will gently guide you through natural and relaxed poses, meeting you where you are and creating an atmosphere that encourages authentic connections and emotions to flourish. I sincerely hope you leave our session feeling more connected to those you hold dear and to provide lasting memories that deepen your connection long after our time together.
Visual Storytelling
"Storytellers are the custodians of human history, the recorders of the human experience, the voice of the human soul."
As a visual storyteller, I keep my eyes open to, not to simply record or replicate an event exactly, but to find the core of the experience and give form to those moments of the human experience.
My projects with local media, non-profits, magazines, and cause-driven efforts include arts for healing, ending child labor, documenting human rights marches, ensuring food equity and housing security, and championing conservation, creativity, and education.
Nature Photography
The word "photosynthesis" comes from the Greek roots photo, meaning light, and synthesis, meaning to bring together or combine parts into a whole. When I’m photographing in nature, I feel, just as the camera draws light into itself to create a picture, I am pulling all the parts of me into a whole. So, if I may be so bold, my nature photographs feel like a form of photosynthesis - folding plants, light, and intention into one.
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For me, nature is the original art form, the first source of inspiration and wisdom for humanity. During my time as curator at the Aquinnah Cultural Center, I had the incredible privilege of bringing Robin Kimmerer—an Indigenous writer and scientist dedicated to restoring ecological balance and rekindling our connection to the land—here to the island. In a copy of her book Braiding Sweetgrass, she wrote a note that invited me into a new way of seeing the world: “May plants be your teacher.” As an educator and someone who tries to look closely at the world, the most humbling truth is that we are always learning, and re-learning. Photographing is a tool to remember these lessons—and over time, I began to realize that nature has an endless amount to teach us if we pay attention.
Healing Portraits
After my Geordie passed away, I began searching through my photo archives for pictures of him, bringing him and the feeling of us closer to me. During our time together, I learned not only the technical aspects of portrait photography but more importantly the deeper act of truly seeing him—and, in turn, being seen by him. Each time I found, adjusted, and printed a photo of Geordie, I discovered a window into the love we shared, and at times, to literally see myself through his eyes. These photographs are a way of connecting and cherishing him that I can pass on to our family and friends, offering them comfort as we all navigate the grief of losing him.
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I’ve never been more grateful to be a photographer, a gift passed down to me by my mentor, Dr. John Diamond, M.D., who taught me that the act of creating and viewing photographs can be deeply healing. I partner with nonprofits to gift families facing illness portraits that go to the heart of what truly matters, reminding us with each picture of the love we have for each other.
First Aid Fine Art
During my partner’s illness, I'd bring nature photos into Dana Farber with us, reminders of beauty and the natural rhythms of life. I started sharing them with our care team, and they became expressions of gratitude that sometimes there were little words for. Each hospital visit, we'd choose a treatment room with a large window, where we could see this one tree - it's so clear in my mind still. When Geordie entered hospice, we'd walk to the cliffs that our home sits atop of. The last time we did this, him holding my waist tightly, a red tail hawk flew across our path. "You're ready to take to wing," I said. When he was too weak to walk to the cliffs, he opened our bedroom door which led to the garden, and he'd take his shoes off to stand barefoot in the grass, and say, "I belong to the earth." These were among his last few days, but he was always a man who belonged to the earth. There's a line in a song, "I've been tamed by the wind and the rain," and that was always Geordie.
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In our bedroom, I placed every nature photo I'd printed around us - bringing the outside inside - recreating what I imagine the Paleolithic caves were - a healing place created through artwork reminding us of where we come from and where we're returning to. If you or someone you love are ill or are in hospice and would like to bring the outside inside through a curated selection of small fine art prints, please reach out. ​
Creative Health & Education
Creative Health & Education is a service that enhances both healthcare and educational environments by integrating visual arts, music, and photography to support the wellbeing and creativity of patients, caregivers, students, and staff. In healthcare settings, I bring comfort and inspiration by visiting patients at their bedside to sing, read, paint, or engage with photographs. I also transform public spaces, such as waiting rooms, with curated photo installations or creative workshops that uplift the atmosphere for everyone.
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In educational spaces, photography and art are taught to nurture students' emotional health, offering hands-on workshops that encourage self-expression and personal growth, as well as outreach. These sessions provide students not only with cameras, lenses, and a range of artistic materials, but with a creative outlet to explore their emotions, enhance their self-awareness, and connect with their surroundings.
Drawing on the long history of the arts in healing, Creative Health & Education fosters a supportive, positive environment in hospitals, clinics, schools, and care facilities, enriching the wellbeing of all who participate.
Exhibits
Photography is the kind of creative medicine that I am passionate about bringing into community, educational, and healthcare settings through exhibits. Whether online or in person, each carefully curated piece, from those that encourage meditation and contemplation to those that deliver messages of fairness, human connection, and healing, is designed to spark curiosity, creativity, and imagination.
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I am currently working on We Live in the Sky, which invites viewers to explore the multifaceted and delicate relationship between humans and the sky.
Handmade Artist Books & Fine Art Prints
Coming Soon!
