John David Kelly (artist)
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John David Kelly | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 October 1862 Gore's Landing, Ontario |
| Died | 27 December 1958 (aged 96) Toronto |
| Education | Ontario School of Art, later known as OCAD, Toronto |
| Known for | painting, printmaking, artist-illustrator |
| Spouse | Alice Bigelow (m. 1886) |
John David Kelly (October 15, 1862 – December 27, 1958)[1] who signed his work J. D. Kelly was an "enormously popular"[2] painter, printmaker and artist-illustrator known for the series of calendar illustrations he did for the Confederation Life Association, depicting great moments in Canadian history. He researched his historical paintings with such accuracy[3] that he has been described by the Toronto Globe & Mail as a reconstructor rather than a painter of historical scenes.[2] His work "made history more real to hundreds and thousands of Canadians".[2]
Kelly was born at Gore's Landing, Ontario on the south shore of Rice Lake, near Peterborough.[3] In 1878, he enrolled at the Ontario School of Art, later known as OCAD, studying with Marmaduke Matthews, John Arthur Fraser and Henri Perré, becoming a gold medalist in 1881[4] and graduating in 1882.[5]
From 1882 to 1885, he worked for the Grip Lithographing firm, then joined the Toronto Lithographing Company, the largest and most advanced lithography firm in the city (it became Rolph-Clark-Stone Ltd),[6][7] and spent 70 years with the company as its premier calendar artist, retiring in 1955.[3]
He was one of the founders of the Toronto Art Students' League and contributed to its calendars.[8][9] He was commissioned by the C.P.R to make illustrated maps[4] and in 1911 and 1929, the C.P.R. commissioned him to travel across Canada o to record images of the country.[5]
He exhibited his paintings at the Ontario Society of Artists exhibitions, where he was elected a member (1895–1912),[10] in the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts,[11] the Art Association of Montreal,[12] Montreal Art Club[13] and the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo (1901).[4]
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His series of historical paintings are in the collection of Confederation Life (28 works),[a] the Art Gallery of Ontario,[5] the McCord Stewart Museum in Montreal,[15] the Toronto Public Library[16] and Library and Archives Canada which has Push On, brave York volunteers (1896) and also has his fonds.[17] 13 of the prints of the paintings owned by Confederation Life are owned by the Cobourg Museum Foundation.[18] Lithographs are also in the collection of Bridgeman Images.[19] Two murals by Kelly are owned by the Royal York Hotel.[12] There is a heritage plaque in Warkworth that recognizes his life and work as a historical artist.[20]