Mercedes Jelinek (b. 1985) is an American artist and photographer based in Brooklyn, NY. Specializing in black and white photography, she transforms her images through painting and collage, constructing visual narratives that explore the diversity of humanity and the intimate stories of her subjects. Her practice is deeply rooted in travel and cross-cultural engagement, often involving immersive experiences with people around the world—learning their values, traditions, and daily lives. A recurring element in her work is water—not only as a symbolic and physical motif but also as a space of transformation. When Jelinek enters the water, she sees it as an act of immersion into the culture surrounding her, a way to dissolve boundaries and connect more deeply with place and people. Her ongoing series, De Translation, originated from her personal experience of acculturation in foreign environments. It captures the emotional arc of adapting to a new culture—from the disorientation and isolation of language barriers to the eventual serenity and belonging that emerge through time and connection. Each portrait in the series is composed of individual inkjet prints layered on recycled pages from Italian books and vintage music sheets—printed in either black and white or blue and white. These materials add layers of meaning, referencing both the cultural context of her subjects and the texture of her own journey through adaptation and understanding. Jelinek holds a BFA in Visual Arts from SUNY Purchase and an MFA from Louisiana State University. She has taught, lectured, and held residencies across the U.S. and Italy, including at East Carolina University in Certaldo, Italy, Penland School of Craft, The New School Parsons, and Yale University School of Art. She also serves on the boards of Blue Sky Gallery (Portland, OR) and the Penland School of Craft (Penland, NC). Her work and publications have been exhibited nationally and internationally and are held in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum, the Library of Congress, Aperture Foundation, and the Getty Institute.