Robert Kelsey was born in Glasgow in 1949. He attended the Glasgow School of Art studying under leading artists David Donaldson, John Cunningham, Alexander Goudie, James Robertson and Duncan Shanks. Years later Robert Kelsey’s paintings still reflect the powerful influence of his art tutors. Other influences on Kelsey’s paintings are The Scottish Colourists, Peploe and Cadell and Robert also admires the art work of the English artists Edward Seago and Ken Howard.
After graduating, like many Scottish artists, Robert Kelsey embarked on a career in Art Education. As an art teacher in a sympathetic school environment Kelsey was encouraged to concentrate on his own art projects alongside classroom work. By the time Bob was appointed Principal Teacher in the ’80s he had established his own art studio and was able to continue to painting there.
In 1995 Robert Kelsey decided to leave art teaching for a full-time career as an artist. Success soon followed and Kelsey has enjoyed many successful art exhibitions in Britain, Europe and the United States. Robert’s contemporary paintings can also be found in several corporate art collections. In 1998 he was awarded a diploma from Paisley Art Institute.
Despite being an enthusiastic traveller, Robert Kelsey has always loved returning to his Scottish roots and the inspiration found in the beauty of the Scottish coastline. Kelsey’s distinctive oils on canvas paintings convey the vast flat beaches, sparkling emerald water and majestic skies in a glowing array of blues, golds and greens. Over the last few years Robert Kelsey has established a reputation for his lively and fluent style of painting. Kelsey often focusses on his favourite subject, the wide, lonely beach landscapes of the Western Isles. Alongside Scottish paintings Kelsey also produces wonderful landscape paintings of Italy, Cornwall and Spain as well as richly coloured still life paintings. The intensity of colour in these continental works and still lifes complement the more subtle tones of the Scottish beaches.
