Published August 2, 2022

by Natalie Taylor

Kelley Vandiver was born in Daytona Beach, Florida. His mother worked in the medical field, but she had gone to school on an art scholarship. Kelley has two brothers, and a sister, he is the oldest. Their father disappeared from their lives when Kelly was only six-years old. His mother remarried and family life changed completely. The step-father was in the army, and that meant a lot of moving from one town to another.

Kelley’s involvement in art began at an early age. The family connection to the visual arts goes back generations, with his great-grandmother being one of the founders of the Tulsa Artists Guild. Perhaps his “art bug” was passed down to him through his mother, who had studied art before choosing her career in the medical field. Kelley’s great-grandmother was a great influence, of course, getting him involved in painting in oils when he was only ten. He also taught himself how to draw. And yet, “I look back at those early drawings but I do not see even a glimmer of my future life-calling,” he says.

Eventually Kelley went to the University of Washington, where he studied creative writing. However, he was already dabbling in visual arts, doing “a bit of this, and a bit of that.” One of his professors who saw his work, told him that his art was “impressive,” and this motivated Kelly to switch to Fine Arts. He recalls how his art career began when a famous artist looked at his work and told him to go back and bring “some real paintings.” Instead of stifling his spirit, this criticism fomented his determination, and he returned again and again, until the artist came to love Kelley’s work and helped set him up in an art gallery. He continued his studies at Oklahoma State University, and later at the University of Tulsa.

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