Joe Kelley (American, 1967-2022) and Carlton Sturges Abbott (American, b. 1939), Pathways, Appalachian Trail Frieze (detail), 1993-95, 35 composite gelatin silverprint photographs and pencil on paper, Taubman Museum of Art; Gift of Ray Kass and Jerrie Pike, 2021.013

Birds, Beasts, and Roots: A Selection of Works by Joe Kelley

Name: Birds, Beasts, and Roots: A Selection of Works by Joe Kelley
Start: 2023-12-01T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2024-04-21T23:59:59-04:00

Dec 01, 2023 – Apr 21, 2024

Joe Kelley (American, 1967-2022) was a valued colleague to those at the Taubman Museum of Art and to gallery construction and exhibition installation teams across southwest Virginia. A committed and well-respected artist, he remains deserving of the exhibition opportunities provided to him during his life and beyond. This exhibition showcases Kelley’s many artistic achievements, including his and Carlton Abbott’s work in the Taubman Museum of Art’s permanent collection titled Pathways, Appalachian Trail Frieze, along with beautifully rendered, insightful paintings and drawings, and found-object sculptures loaned courtesy of his wife, Dominique Francesca.

Joe Kelley was born in 1967 in Fairfax, Virginia. He lived in Blacksburg, Virginia while working and creating in both Blacksburg and the Roanoke Valley. He received a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Virginia Tech and completed archeological fieldwork at Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest in 1993. For many years, he was a studio assistant to painter Ray Kass, as well as an aide and participant in John Cage’s Mountain Lake Workshop projects. In addition, Kelley was a passionate outdoorsman and a dedicated volunteer for the Roanoke Appalachian Trail Club.

Kelley proposed and lead the project Pathways: Appalachian Trail Frieze in 1993, 1994, and 1995. He also participated in various other exhibitions and projects with the Mountain Lake Workshop group including Fabricated troughs for Steps Performance by Merce Cunningham Dance Company, New York City (2008); Pathways, Appalachian Trail Frieze workshop in Christiansburg, VA (2009); and Steps and Breathing Lines: The Mountain Lake Workshop at the Taubman Museum of Art (2013).