KELLY FRANKÉ
Kelly Franké is a Long Island based fine artist. Her 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. She balances her fine art practice with illustrating monthly for Northforker Magazine, realtors, and accepting both business and personal commissions.
ARTIST STATEMENT
Drawing is a process of building and searching. I’ve always been attracted to landscapes that are architecturally intricate. The harder it is to draw, the greater my need is to conquer it on paper. However, my interest is not in photo realism. My focus is primarily on linear elements, and how I can achieve explicit detail with minimal, elegant lines. I strive to map out structural proportions perfectly. In attempt to balance accuracy with play, I allow certain moments to remain unfinished, as if faded away. Upon closer inspection, scribbling. Exposed construction lines echo traditional blueprints. Essentially my drawings are constructions – some literal, others more allusive.
When drawing on wood, the first thing I do is study its grain. Each piece tells a story - defines a mood. Directional grains speak to sky and water. Listening, I allow my drawn lines to merge with the wood’s grain. The goal is to balance structure and the organic, giving each piece of wood a new life so unique, that I could never recreate it.
CURRICULUM VITAE
EDUCATION
2009 - 2012 Master of Fine Art | Drawing & Printmaking | Magna Cum Laude
Indiana University | Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Art | Bloomington, IN
View my MFA Thesis Exhibition here
2004 - 2008 Bachelor of Fine Art | Drawing, Painting & Printmaking | Art Education Minor | Cum Laude
Alfred University | School of Art & Design | Alfred, NY
EXHIBITIONS
Current + Upcoming
April 2024 - NYE 2025 2024 RESIDENT ARTIST: Southold Social | Southold, NY
July 2018 - Current William Ris Gallery | Jamesport, NY
Spring 2023 Chronicle Wines | Peconic, NYNov
Fall 2022 - Spring 2023 PBV | Cutchogue, NY
March - May 2022 a million little pieces | VSOP Projects | Greenport, NY
Nov 2021 - February 2022 20 x 20 = 400 Invitational to benefit CAST | VSOP Projects | Greenport, NY
Nov 2021 - February, 2022 Winter Salon | Fiedler Gallery | Greenport, NY
Aug 27th - Oct 30th, 2021 All Together Now | Floyd Memorial Library | Greenport, NY | Curated by Sally Grant
All 2020 exhibitions were cancelled
Nov 2018 - Dec 2019 Roman Fine Art Gallery | East Hampton, NY
December 2019 2019 Winter Salon | VSOP Projects | Greenport, NY
Aug 2019 SOLO Show | Clovis Point Vineyard | Laurel, NY
June - July 2019 Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society 18th Annual Art Show | Fire Island Lighthouse, NY
June 15th, 2019 Swing Into Summer Auction to benefit Group for the East End | The Bridge | Sag Harbor, NY
April 4th - 7th, 2019 Philadelphia Fine Art Fair, Represented by Roman Fine Art Gallery | Philadelphia, PA
April - June 2019 SOLO Show | Lieb Cellars | Cutchogue, NY
Feb - Mar 2019 New Year, New Works | William Ris Gallery | Jamesport, NY
Nov - Jan 2019 Get with the Program | Roman Fine Art Gallery | East Hampton, NY
June - July 2018 E S C A P E S | Group Landscape Exhibition | William Ris Gallery | Jamesport, NY
May - July 2018 SOLO Show | Rosalie Dimon Gallery - Presented by East End Arts | Jamesport, NY
Dec - June 2018 Collective + Friends | Castello di Borghese Vineyard | Cutchogue, NY
Dec 2017 11th Annual 10 x 10 = 100 Art Show | The South Street Gallery | Greenport, NY
Aug 2017 - Aug 2019 North Fork Art Collective | Greenport, NY
May 2017 Sea Something Save Something | Castello di Borghese Vineyard | Cutchogue, NY
Dec 2016 - May 2017 SOLO Show | 6 - Month Resident Artist | QED | Astoria, NY
2016 - 2017 The South Street Gallery | Greenport, NY
Dec 2016 10th Annual 10 x 10 = 100 Art Show | The South Street Gallery | Greenport, NY
Sept 2016 TWO Person Show (w/ Sculptor Gary Quarty) | The South Street Gallery | Greenport, NY
Aug 2016 SOLO Show | First and South | Greenport, NY
Mar - Apr 2016 SOLO Show | Presented by IDLE WILD Magazine | The LetLove Inn | Astoria, NY
Oct 2015 SOLO Show | Astoria Art Fest | Mar's | Astoria, NY
2014 - 2016 Fiedler Gallery | Greenport, NY
2014 Astoria Art Fest | Sweet Afton | Astoria, NY
2013 SOLO Show | Mary & Ellen | John Waldron Arts Center | Bloomington, IN
2013 Drawing in the Now | Poorwill Gallery | Lubbock, TX
2012 Reflection & Projection | PUSH pin-up PRODUCTIONS | New Orleans, LA
2012 6 Obstructions 6 Artists | The Paper Room | Bloomington, IN
2012 Mary Ellen | MFA Thesis Exhibition | Grunwald Gallery at IU | Bloomington, IN
2012 Landscape, Space & Place Conference | Bloomington, IN
2011 MFA Group Show | SoFa Gallery at Indiana University | Bloomington, IN
2011 Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society Annual Art Show | Captree Island, NY
2010 Off The Wall | McCalla Gallery | Bloomington, IN
2010 The Matrix & The Print | SoFa Gallery | Bloomington, IN
2009 Arts Fest 2009 | Art & Power: Inertia | Low Road Gallery | Greencastle, IN
2009 Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society Annual Art Show | Fire Island Lighthouse, NY
2009 Babylon Village Art Council Presents: Art in the Park | Babylon, NY
2008 Bachelor of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition | Alfred University | Alfred, NY
PRESS
“Master Craftsman: Kelly Franké Offers a Different Kind of Portrait", Behind the Hedges, June 2022
“Kelly Franké”, UNDERGROUND Magazine, November 2021
"Inside the Artists' Studio: Kelly Franké", Northforker Magazine, August 2021
"The Art of Kelly Franké Goes with The Grain," North Fork Real Estate Showcase Magazine, August 2020
News 12 Long Island TV Segment - "East End: Kelly Franké", March 2020
"The Art of Kelly Franké Goes with The Grain," Hamptons Real Estate Showcase Magazine, Feb 2020
"2 Exhibitions Showcase Art from The Hamptons & North Fork at William Ris Gallery," Hamptons Art Hub, July 2018
"Kelly Franké Brings Art to the Big Screen," Long Island Pulse, May 2017
"Kelly Franké of Greenport Transforms her Passion for Art into a Business," Northforker, April 2017
"7 Artists of the North Fork Art Collective," North Fork Real Estate Showcase, Oct 2017
"Kelly Franké: House Call," Idle Wild, 2016
NOTABLE COMMISSIONS + CLIENTS
CLIENT LIST: Sage & Madison, Sag Harbor | Arnie Paperie, Southold | CAST | Sparkling Pointe Vineyard | Strong's Marine
The Chequit Hotel, Shelter Island | Pasta Pasta, Port Jefferson | The Village Cheese Shop, Mattituck | Duryea's, Montauk
Menhaden, Greenport | North Fork Table Inn | Layla Sailing, Greenport | North Fork Promise Land Apiaries | & many more!
2022 ILLUSTRATOR | Strong's Marine
Illustrated a campus map for their Mattituck Water Club, and drawings for their site re-launch
2022 ARTIST | The Chequit Hotel's 2022 Sparking Wine, Produced by Peconic Bay Vineyards
Designed a wine label for a sparking wine commemorating The Chequit's 150th Anniversary
2021 - 2024 Monthly Contributing ILLUSTRATOR | Northforker Magazine
Designed a 2-page North Fork map, and illustrates rotating featured locations
2021 FEATURED ARTIST | LocaLI Bred Subscription Box
Teamed up with LocaLI Bred to include Kelly Franké Gicleé Prints within their subscription box
2021 ARTIST | Legal Seafoods Restaurant at the Short Hills Mall, NJ
Newly renovated, Legal Seafoods features large-scale installations of Kelly’s artwork
2020 ARTIST | Portobello Restaurant, Greenport, NY
Commissioned to create 22 custom drawings for the restaurant's interior
2020 ARTIST | The Scout Guide | Hamptons Volume 2
Designed + illustrated a 2-page map of the North Fork, Long Island
2016 ARTIST | The Affair by SHOWTIME
Sold 4 drawings to The Affair for set decor
2015 ARTIST | Scream Queens by FOX
Sold 5 drawings to Scream Queens for a permanent set; the Campus Coffee Shop
2010 MURALIST | Mathers Museum of World Cultures | Indiana University
Designed & painted 6 original murals for the Semi-Permanent Exhibition:
The Big Bang to the World Wide Web: The Origins of Everything
2006 - 2008 MURALIST | Babylon Village Pool | Babylon, NY
Designed & painted 8 large (40’ x 12’) original outdoor murals
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2012 - 2015 Adjunct Instructor of Fine Art | Drawing 1 & Relief Printmaking
Caldwell University | Caldwell, NJ
2010 - 2012 Associate Instructor of Fundamental Studio - Drawing
Indiana University | Bloomington, IN
2013 Art Instructor
Tiny Greenhouse | Ages 18 months - 5 years | Jersey City, NJ
2012 Art Instructor
Ivy Arts for Kids at Ivy Tech Community College | Ages 3-10 | Bloomington, IN
2008 Student Teacher in Art
Babylon Elementary School & Babylon Junior-Senior High School | Babylon, NY
2007 Teaching Assistant
Alfred University | Alfred, NY
2005 - 2008 Teacher of Private Art Lessons
Self Employed | Ages 5+