September 1–26, 2013, Baton Rouge Gallery is featuring The Gift, an exhibition of mixed-media drawings by Kelli Scott Kelley. The opening reception will be held on Wednesday, September 4, 7–9 p.m. On Sunday, September 8, at 4 p.m., Kelley will participate in ARTiculate, Baton Rouge Gallery’s monthly artist talk series.

In Kelley’s work, figures, animals, and objects appear in metaphorical narratives, which explore humankind’s connections, disconnections, and impact on the natural world.

Natural Disaster by Kelli Scott Kelley
acrylic and charcoal on repurposed paper, 8.5″ x 11″, 2013

“The images are executed using collaged, repurposed papers, most salvaged from my son’s discarded school papers. In culling the piles of papers I’d kept over the years, I was surprised to find countless wonderful drawings. In some of my pieces, there is a dialog between his doodles and my images,” said Kelley.

Kelley is an artist and associate professor of painting at the LSU School of Art. Her work has been primarily comprised of mixed-media narrative paintings, drawings, and objects. She has also collaborated with her husband, composer Bill Kelley, on surreal performances and video pieces. Kelley’s paintings have been exhibited in many venues, including the Mesic Ve Dne Gallerie in Czeske Budejovice, Czech Republic; Bangalore University in India; the Contemporary Arts Museum and the Hooks-Epstein Gallery in Houston, Texas; the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art in Colorado; and Taylor Bercier Gallery in New Orleans, Louisiana.

In 2012, Kelley was awarded a $32,000 ATLAS grant (Awards to Louisiana Artists and Scholars) to complete her project Accalia and the Swamp Monster. The traveling exhibit will open in September 2014 at the LSU Museum of Art in a join event with LSU Press, which is publishing a book of the work.

About Kelli Scott Kelley
Kelli Scott Kelley is an associate professor of painting at Louisiana State University School of Art. Originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Kelley received a bachelor of fine art from LSU and a master of fine art from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. She lived in the San Francisco Bay area and in Houston, Texas, for 15 years before returning to Baton Rouge with her husband to raise their son and teach at LSU. Her work can be viewed at kelliscottkelley.com.

About Baton Rouge Gallery
The Baton Rouge Gallery, Center for Contemporary Art is a non-profit contemporary art gallery, located at BREC’s historic City Park pavilion. The gallery offers contemporary art exhibitions, featuring professional, local, and national artists, and hosts special performances, a spoken word program, and special juried and invitational exhibitions. Monthly exhibitions feature the work of current artist members, including photographers, painters, sculptors, stained-glass artists, printmakers, ceramists, multi-media and installation artists. Opening receptions are free and open the public and are held for each exhibition, 7–9 p.m., on the first Wednesday of every month.

About the School of Art
The LSU School of Art combines the best of both worlds: the resources and faculty of a large liberal arts institution and the personal attention that comes in a close-knit community. Students in the School of Art develop specialized skills while experimenting with various mediums, exploring their own creative intuition, and studying art history and contemporary art theory. Education comes from intensive critiques, working studio classes, dedicated professors, and engagement with the larger arts community through a curriculum that combines academic teaching and hands-on experiences, both on and off campus. For more information, visit art.lsu.edu.

Contact
Angela Harwood
Communications Coordinator
LSU College of Art + Design
102 Design Building
Baton Rouge, LA 70803
(225) 578-9041
aharwood@lsu.edu