Merz’s work ranges from delicate line drawings to abstract paintings and sculpture and is influenced by Brooklyn, cartoons, architecture and the kinetic structure of things. Media has influenced the constantly changing surfaces that are worked upon. Synthetic, clear, moving and simple. No hierarchies are implied. Lines and respect for their changing integrity are what her practice is. Her signature style, densely-packed glyph patterns creates complex, non-linear narratives that decode poems, texts and conversations with people passing by. Merz earned her BFA from the Cooper Union School of Art. She has exhibited nationally including the Brooklyn Museum. She is a recipient of the Pollock Krasner Grant, The Oberman Center Collaborative grant, and has been a fellow at the Chinati Foundation and the Macdowell Colony. She has recently been awarded The Augustus Saint-Gaudens life time achievement award from The Cooper Union School of Art and is in their Alumni Hall of Fame.
