"Inside the Mind of Kreg D. Kelley"
An Interview with EJ Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief, Topcoat Magazine
May 5, 2010
"Classical art has made an auspicious resurgence in the form of Washington, DC-based artist, Kreg D. Kelley. Many of his works cleverly invoke themes from past legends, blending the styles of artists like Picasso with his own prodigious talent. His pieces seemlessly draw the eyes to the entire canvas. Kelley succeeds where too many contemporary artists fail or make no effort: creating a relationship between art and the viewer.
That success had been confirmed at the age of twelve, when Kelley won fist art award. He went on to sell all fifteen pieces of his very first show and consistently sells to buyers all over the world. We caught up to Kelley to gain more insight on an artist resting comfortably on the precipice of stardom.
TCM: What message do you feel you wish to convey in your art? Is it a consistent message that is uniform in all your art or does each piece have a completely independent voice?
KDK: I’ve always been a fan of the concept that "beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. I think that placing a name or label on a piece, or implying a certain message constricts the viewer's natural response. Unless I am paying homage to a certain subject, the biggest struggle I've had with my work is the nomenclature. In my collages that involve antique items such as sheet music, keys, clock parts, et al., from the 19th century, I am trying to show the viewer that 'old and forgotten' can still be 'new and modern'. Many of the antique items I use are salvaged, and are often on their way to being thrown away; I like the idea of preserving the past. Inspiration is sometimes hard to label in certain pieces, and most of them have their own unique story. Naturally, my style varies with the story, just as it evolves over the years to reflect my experiences and the things that have moved me. I think Pierre Reverdy put is best when he wrote “Poetry is achieved when any work of art is integrated, be it only for a moment, in the real life of man by the emotion it provokes in his spirit and in his flesh.”
TCM: What was the jolt, not so much the inspiration behind creating such works of art?
KDK: Life is short. The idea that I am creating beautiful things that people will enjoy long after I am gone gives me a sense of excitement and pride. History has always fascinated me and I think it is not egocentric to desire to be a part of it- or to be remembered. Just like a person’s legacy is carried on through a child, mine is continued through my work.
TCM: Working in a gallery with other works of art, is it difficult to not be inspired from what you see other artist creating or do you welcome the outside influence?
KDK: I absolutely love being around art other than my own and it helps me to be tactful about the work I am doing. I think it is important to have respect for what has been done or else your pieces will end up redundant and lackluster. While I am inspired by the art I work around, I can equally be turned off. The key I’ve learned is to balance what you see, and do it with your own style. I don’t want to be Picasso or Matisse, or any of the others whose work surrounds me, I want to be myself.
TCM: Where do you find your continual inspiration for creating new works?
KDK: Aside from hearing kind words, and of course selling a piece, the significant moments that keep me going involve museums and nature. I've been lucky to live in a city where some of the world's most beautiful art is held, both natural and man-made. Whenever I need to re-charge my creative thinking I go to these places. If something really hits me it will somehow be a cog in the wheel that drives me to create. And more than anything, knowing that what I create brings happiness to the viewer is how I gain more and more inspiration. I love what I do and I think that is inspiration within itself."
-by EJ Jacobs, 2010
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2010 National Calendar Contest Winner for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU):
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"International and independent, Go Mama Go! has been stocking a wide variety of globally-minded products for nigh on a decade. Ever charitable, their fair strade stuffed animals ($20-30), benefit their African craftsmen, while they also host the work of artists closer to home, like the mixed-media collage of D.C.’s own Kreg D. Kelley ($450). Even found items, such as felled trees, get the 'waste not' treatment in the form of polished cherry and maple wine stoppers ($30). 1809 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009"
-Hunter Gorinson, DC North: The Hill Rag Magazine
"Holiday Gift Guide: December 2009"
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"Kreg Kelley pushes the limits of his collages..."
-John Blee, The GEORGETOWNER
"Art Wrap: Art Runneth Over at Artomatic", June 2009
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"...An ingenious touch is provided by a series of paintings hanging on the set and on the theater walls. The subject matter, all portraits of women, provides an early tip-off to the play's Sapphic theme. And artist Kreg Kelley has created a perfect modernist look, recalling Matisse and especially Picasso's famous portrait of Gertrude Stein..."
-Celia Wren, The WASHINGTON POST, February 21, 2006
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"...the Source Theatre ...has never looked better. Not only do painter Kreg Kelley's modernist looking portraits exclusively of women decorate the set, but they adorn the house as well. The theatre's interior has been well scrubbed and painted, while outside, a new brightly lit marquee twinkles 'Boston Marriage'..."
-Patrick Folliard, The WASHINGTON BLADE, March 3, 2006
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"...As this may well be the last show to play Source Theatre, it is sad but gratifying to report that the hall itself has never looked better, outfitted with a false proscenium and festooned both onstage and off with art by Kreg Kelley."
-Bob Mondello, The WASHINGTON CITY PAPER, March 2, 2006
