Introducing Brittany Kelly! Brittany joins us from Auburn, Alabama and is a preserved flora painter. She holds a degree in Psychology and Human Services from Montreat College, and a certificate of practical ministry and theology. After school, she spent nearly a decade professionally in the creative mediums of photography, digital design, and paint, while primarily based out of Fort Collins, Colorado. With the pull to bring kids closer to family and a growing army of cousins, a move back to Alabama brought her and her husband home to the familiarity of state and scenery they were raised by. Britt Kelly Design House is a curation of skill and offerings ten years in the making. She uses a myriad of mediums from preserved flora and rain water, to gouache, charcoal, and pencil, in a self-taught style; exposed through immersion into the wild west, and grounded by the slow, sleepy seasons of the southern soil she was raised on and eventually returned to. Her work has been acquired for private collections nationwide, and she is slowly ticking off her goal of having a collector in every state!Adding her to the Well + Wonder collection is a dream. Her Resurrected Gardens collection will debut with Well + Wonder on Wednesday, May 15 at 10 am - you won’t want to miss it! Until then, continue reading to learn all about this fabulous artist - Brittany Kelly!
What is currently on your nightstand?
My empty coffee mug from this morning, and most likely a hot wheel or two.
Who is your biggest influence as an artist and why?
My biggest influence as an artist is most likely my family. They offer the untouchables when I am stuck, or when I finish a collection. My husband and kids are just FUN. They hype me up and make me feel like a much more gifted artist than I will ever be. I can’t even imagine being a working artist without that level of love guiding me on.
Tell us about your childhood. What is the most memorable moment as a young person?
When I think of my childhood, I smell honeysuckle and see scraped knees from hour long neighborhood games with friends. I was given a really good gift packaged as my childhood. I don’t think I have a certain “most memorable” moment, but moving from California to Alabama when I was 8 certainly was a monumental “page turner” for my life.
If you could only have one supply in your art studio, what would it be and why?
Preserved blooms & bugs. They’re my most favorite base element to my most favorite pieces.
What is your favorite room in your house? Describe it.
My favorite room in my house is my living room. It’s anchored with a fireplace and holds all of our families most favorite photos, art, and collected treasures. What could be better?
What is your biggest score online?
A pair of labradorite and diamond studs from The Real Real. Vintage and antique clothing/furniture hunts forever.
What is the benefit of buying art through a collective? What do you recommend for those that are new to buying original art?
The greatest benefit I see in buying art through a collective is the relational aspect you are afforded. Getting to know an artist, art dealers, and interior designers through communication and visuals is a game changer when it comes to learning how to best grow your personal art collection.
If you have the entire day to spend in an art museum, which one and why?
I am dying to visit the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. I am the art teacher at my kid’s school, and the art history unit on Van Gogh is absolutely fascinating. Getting to see these works in real life with the knowledge of how and when and why they were done would (I imagine) be a very one-of-a-kind experience. Otherwise I’m a Met girl through and through, and I haven’t been since my kids were babies. I’d love to have a solo day to take it all in at my own pace.
What is your favorite hotel and what makes it special?
I’m certain my most favorite is one I’ve never been to, but my knee jerk reaction is The Wall Street Inn. It’s charming, petite, and full of the strong personalities, aged brass, classic green velvets, and patterned wallpaper, you want from a hotel in New York. If you’re in NYC you’re headed somewhere fabulous, or you just came from one. She’s hard to beat.
If you were a lipstick color would you be red, pink, or clear and why?
Pale pink. Simple is just a welcomed theme in my life.
I can never get on a plane without…
Close toed shoes.
How did you get into the world of art?
I started filling up sketch books with drawings when I was in early elementary school. The love just grew from there. My High School AP Art teacher helped direct course selections for someone who didn’t necessarily see themselves majoring in art, and I think that guidance was the groundwork that opened doors with so many older, artist relationships. I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today without those voices.
What do you do to relax?
Garden, fly-fish, or a good girls night always does the trick!
When do you get the biggest surge of inspiration?
When I am working on a collection. I love commission pieces, but there is something about developing an entire collection that makes my soul sing. When you are pulling and adding details into numerous pieces at one time, that magic happens where you just get lost in it all. The colors, the shapes, the storyline. Hours can pass that feel like minutes. I love that sweet spot.
Prediction for the Color of 2025?
Figgy purple.
What is your idea of a date night? Dinner and a movie or dancing all night?
Dinner and a movie every time. Unless a wedding is involved, then my husband and I are ready to get blisters on the dance floor.
Tell us about your favorite painting that you have created.
My most favorite painting I have ever created is an untitled piece that hangs in our bedroom. It was my first ever attempt at painting a preserved moth and as all trial runs go, I wasn’t sure how it would work. The wings are huge and spread wide open, and it was truly my “ah-hah!” moment in developing a style that was not pulled from another artist. It was uniquely “me” and has a ripple effect of authenticity on every piece I have created since.
One piece of advice for buying original art?
Save to buy what you truly love, and please pay the artist a fair price!
