“I paint to tell stories about places. To honour where I have come from. To embrace where I am now.”
Kelly Southee is a Queensland based artist. She was born in New Zealand and moved to Australia at a young age. She has also lived in Canada and the United States. Kelly’s first career was as an interior architect. She draws on that interest in the 'built environment' in paintings of buildings, streets and our heritage.
In 2001 Kelly was given the opportunity to paint full time while living in California. This proved a productive year. Moving countries emphasised the differences in how people live and interact with their environment; and inspired her to capture what was unique about places, wherever she may be. She aims to highlight our relationship with the environment, both urban and rural, in paintings featuring people and the places and spaces they inhabit and also escape to.
Kelly enjoys sketching and painting en-plein air when time permits. Connection to nature is an enduring theme.
As a departure from landscapes Kelly is often drawn to objects and still life scenes. Kelly remains focused on creating art that tells stories and captures places and memories.
2018 Aspire Gallery Petite Pieces Art Award - Runner Up Sponsor Prize 'Winter Morning Light 1, Girraween', Paddington, Brisbane
2015 Nundah Village Festival Art Show – First Place Still Life ‘Nosey Lemons’, Nundah, Queensland
2014 Nundah Village Festival Art Show – Still Life Runner Up Prize ‘Radishes in Yellow’, Nundah, Queensland
2013 Nundah Village Festival Art Prize – Landscape First Prize ‘Holy Bloom’, Nundah, Queensland
2022 'Perfect Imperfection' with Sandra Harrison of Harrison Ceramics, Kepk Space, Yeerongpilly, Brisbane
2019 'The Spring Exhibition' With Alan Morrison, Percolator Gallery, Paddington, Brisbane
2017 ‘Kelly Southee - From New Zealand to Stanthorpe’, Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery, Stanthorpe, The Granite Belt Region, Southern Queensland
2016 ‘Home is where the Art is’ - With Renate Martini-Jacobi, The Pool Studio, Annerley, Brisbane
2015 ‘Our Places: A Record’ Buildings Exhibition, The Pool Studio, Annerley, Brisbane
2014 Moolooloo Station and Beyond Group Exhibition, Willoughby, Sydney
2014 ‘Poolside’ Landscape & Still Life Exhibition, The Pool Studio, Annerley, Brisbane
2013 ‘Playing with Food’ Still Life Exhibition Sprout French Café, Auchenflower, Brisbane
2013 ‘Absurditrees’ Landscape Exhibition Sprout French Café, Auchenflower, Brisbane
2012 Pop-Up Exhibition St Joseph’s ‘Fashion in the Garden’, Kangaroo Point
2012 ‘A Year After the Brisbane Flood’ Landscape Exhibition, Brisbane City Council Library, Fairfield Gardens, Brisbane
2002 ‘Top of the World & Poles Apart’ Exhibition with photographers Len Phillips and Anne Dowd, Newstead, Brisbane
Kelly's work has been shown in the Lethbridge Gallery $10,000 Small Scale Art Prize in 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013; the Rotary Art Spectacular, Brisbane City in 2017, 2016, 2015, Stanthorpe Regional Art Gallery in 2017; Ewart Gallery, Willoughby, Sydney in 2014.
Kelly is available for private commissions and offers her most popular work as high quality limited edition reproductions via her Shop linked to Buy Art Now.
Selected Group Exhibitions:
2015 ‘Peace & Quiet: QANZAC 100 Memories of a New Generation’ – State Library of Queensland
2014 Flinders Ranges Group Exhibition ‘Moolooloo Station & Beyond’, Ewart Gallery, Willoughby, Sydney
2002 ‘Top of the World & Poles Apart’ Exhibition with photographers Len Phillips & Anne Dowd, The Art House, Newstead
Kelly's work is in corporate and private Collections in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA, and Sweden.
Visit Kelly's website here.
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