Kelly Franke
Title: Counting Crows
Medium: Charcoal, Conte, Watercolor, Acrylic and Ink on Skateboard
Kelly Franké (born & raised in Babylon, NY) is a Long Island based fine artist, known for her signature charcoal drawings on birch wood. Kelly's love for drawing stems from early childhood - she would camp out under her father's drafting table, popping out occasionally to watch him draw. Her father Phil Franké, a prolific commercial illustrator, coached Kelly throughout the years. Always "the class artist", it was only natural that she would go on to get her BFA at Alfred University, and MFA at Indiana University. Kelly next went on to teach at Caldwell University in NJ, but after a couple of years she felt compelled to commit herself to studio. Kelly left NYC and moved to Greenport, where she was inspired by her surroundings.
One windy afternoon, Kelly was drawing outside when the wind kept getting under her paper, which was loosely clamped to a wooden drawing board. Frustrated, she crumpled up the paper and started sketching directly onto the wood. Surprised by the result, she decided to pursue wood as a canvas, curious to see how far she could take the integration of natural grains and drawn lines. With each piece, Kelly carefully selects a grain that will best complement her subject matter. Kelly curates an ongoing collection of wood in her studio, ultimately matching each piece with its destined imagery.
Today, Kelly works in her home studio full-time, with her dog Thumper in lap. She balances her fine art practice with accepting both business & personal commissions.
Title: Counting Crows
Medium: Charcoal, Conte, Watercolor, Acrylic and Ink on Skateboard
Kelly Franké (born & raised in Babylon, NY) is a Long Island based fine artist, known for her signature charcoal drawings on birch wood. Kelly's love for drawing stems from early childhood - she would camp out under her father's drafting table, popping out occasionally to watch him draw. Her father Phil Franké, a prolific commercial illustrator, coached Kelly throughout the years. Always "the class artist", it was only natural that she would go on to get her BFA at Alfred University, and MFA at Indiana University. Kelly next went on to teach at Caldwell University in NJ, but after a couple of years she felt compelled to commit herself to studio. Kelly left NYC and moved to Greenport, where she was inspired by her surroundings.
One windy afternoon, Kelly was drawing outside when the wind kept getting under her paper, which was loosely clamped to a wooden drawing board. Frustrated, she crumpled up the paper and started sketching directly onto the wood. Surprised by the result, she decided to pursue wood as a canvas, curious to see how far she could take the integration of natural grains and drawn lines. With each piece, Kelly carefully selects a grain that will best complement her subject matter. Kelly curates an ongoing collection of wood in her studio, ultimately matching each piece with its destined imagery.
Today, Kelly works in her home studio full-time, with her dog Thumper in lap. She balances her fine art practice with accepting both business & personal commissions.
Title: Counting Crows
Medium: Charcoal, Conte, Watercolor, Acrylic and Ink on Skateboard
Kelly Franké (born & raised in Babylon, NY) is a Long Island based fine artist, known for her signature charcoal drawings on birch wood. Kelly's love for drawing stems from early childhood - she would camp out under her father's drafting table, popping out occasionally to watch him draw. Her father Phil Franké, a prolific commercial illustrator, coached Kelly throughout the years. Always "the class artist", it was only natural that she would go on to get her BFA at Alfred University, and MFA at Indiana University. Kelly next went on to teach at Caldwell University in NJ, but after a couple of years she felt compelled to commit herself to studio. Kelly left NYC and moved to Greenport, where she was inspired by her surroundings.
One windy afternoon, Kelly was drawing outside when the wind kept getting under her paper, which was loosely clamped to a wooden drawing board. Frustrated, she crumpled up the paper and started sketching directly onto the wood. Surprised by the result, she decided to pursue wood as a canvas, curious to see how far she could take the integration of natural grains and drawn lines. With each piece, Kelly carefully selects a grain that will best complement her subject matter. Kelly curates an ongoing collection of wood in her studio, ultimately matching each piece with its destined imagery.
Today, Kelly works in her home studio full-time, with her dog Thumper in lap. She balances her fine art practice with accepting both business & personal commissions.