ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Mark Kelso was born in 1967, and raised in Indianapolis, IN. During his early years, through the support and influence of his family, he spent much of his time immersed in art and nature. From this background, Mark chose the visual arts for his career. He majored in painting at John Herron School of Art, in Indianapolis, IN, and began doing social, philosophical, and environmentally oriented subject matter in his senior year. This nature/civilization content in his work was translated to wildlife and landscape subject matter the following year, and has remained a reoccurring theme in his work over the years.
Mark’s art has been exhibited and sold globally. His paintings have sold through Christie’s auction house in London, Sotheby’s in New York, and Bonham’s in Singapore. In the year 2000 he was selected as a featured artist for the “Beauty of Formosa” exhibition with the National Museum of Natural History in Taipei, Taiwan. In 2002 his art appeared in a special exhibition at the National Geographic Society in Washington, DC. Mark is an inductee of the international Society of Animal Artists and Artists For Conservation organizations, and has been seen in numerous international publications including Wildlife Art, US Art, Western Art Collector, and Informart.
2012
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Decoys and Wildlife Gallery Annual Open House
Master Instructor – Susan K. Black Foundation 2012 Artists Workshop
2011
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Plein Aire Paint Out
Greenacres Museum of Art – Solo Exhibition
CarmelInternational Arts Festival – Mayor’s Award
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
2010
Ashby Gallery – Solo Exhibition
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery Plein Aire
Ron Kobli Gallery Decoys and Wildlife Annual Miniatures
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery annual Miniatures
2009
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
NatureWorks Annual Juried Exhibition – Winner Best of Show 2-D
Germanton Gallery Plein Aire
Ron Kobli Galllery Decoys and Wildlife Annual Miniatures
Ashby Gallery Annual Miniatures
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery annual Miniatures
2008
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
NatureWorks Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery Plein Aire
Ron Kobli Galllery Decoys and Wildlife Annual Miniatures
Ashby Gallery Annual Miniatures
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery annual Miniatures
2007
Spartanburg Art Museum – Art of the Rainforest
Canton Museum of Art – Art of the Rainforest
Germanton Gallery Plein Aire
Ron Kobli Gallery Decoys and Wildlife Annual Miniatures
Artists For Conservation Annual Juried Exhibition
Society of Animal Artists Annual Juried Exhibition and Tour
2006
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery Plein Aire
Gallery One Masterworks in Miniature
Fallbrook Art Museum – Reflections of Nature Exhibition
Germanton Gallery Things With Wings
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery annual Miniatures
2005
Roger Tory Peterson Institute – Nature Art Exhibition
James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History – Drawn To Nature
Gallery One Masterworks in Miniature
Plantation Juried Wildlife Art Exhibition
Wildlife Experience Museum of Art – Society of Animal Artists
2004
Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum – Art of the Animal
Bennington Center for the Arts – Art of Nature
Sarasota Children’s Museum – Wildlife Art
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
Germanton Gallery Things With Wings – Featured Artist
2003
The Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum – Art of The Animal Kingdom
The Wildlife Experience
West Valley Art Museum
Vero Beach Museum of Art
New Visions Gallery
Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH
Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Waterfowl Festival Annual Juried Exhibition
2002
National Geographic Society – Art of the Animal
The Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum – Art of The Animal Kingdom
The Wildlife Experience
The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
Canton Museum of Art
Utah Museum of Natural History
Bergstrom
Mahler Museum
The Miami Metrozoo, Miami, FL
2001
Plantation Wildlife Annual Art Exhibition
The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
West Valley Art Museum
The William S. Fairfield Public Gallery
Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science Visual Arts Center
Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History
Louisiana Arts and Science Center
2000
Plantation Wildlife Annual Art Exhibition
The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition Annual Juried Exhibition
The William S. Fairfield Public Gallery
Academy Art Museum
Burpee Museum of Natural History
University of Nebraska State Museum
Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History
South Texas Institute for the Arts
Taipei National Museum of Natural History – Beauty of Formosa
1999
Germanton Gallery Things With Wings
Sharon Arts Center – Wildlife Art
Pacific Rim Wildlife Art Show Annual Juried Exhibition
Rainforests: The Breath of Amhakia
1998
Pacific Rim Wildlife Art Show Annual Juried Exhibition
Northern Wildlife Art Exhibition – Featured Artist
Contact Mark:
Amhakia Studio
7251 Fields Way
Indianapolis, IN 46239
317-862-0966
mark@markkelsoart.com