About the ARTIST

A life-long artist in many media, Ellen Kennelly was raised alternating between Cambridge, Massachusetts and Claremont, California until matriculation at St. Paul’s School.   She received her A.B. in 1985 from Harvard-Radcliffe in English and comparative religion.  Inspired by teaching experience during summers in Tonga, S. Pacific, Ellen taught English and coached crew and debate at St. Paul’s.  She returned to Harvard for a Master of Divinity in Religion and Secondary Education in 1990, concentrating in literature of non-violence and social ethics.  In need of a creative outlet while working as a teaching fellow, she turned a cake decorating hobby into a successful high-concept wedding cake business, which she ended in 2000 to give priority to more permanent art.

 A sculpture class in 1992 taught by nationally renowned public artist Ralph Helmick at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston led to a concentrated pursuit of figurative sculpture.  After working as an assistant at Mr. Helmick’s studio, Ellen taught that class in sculpture at the MFA.  She also studied wood carving with Joe Wheelwright and further expanded her repertoire in 2008 to include flameworked glass. 

Now settled in Washington, Ellen continues to work mainly by private commission, and seeks inspiration and materials from the magnificent natural world surrounding her new home.  An avid competitive masters sculler, she trains on local lakes or their surrounding trails.  Ellen devotes substantial volunteer time as a planter of future old-growth forests and as a vegan advocate to champion the intertwined causes of non-violence, justice and wellness for the earth and all living beings.

Curriculum Vitae

EDUCATION
Harvard Divinity School, Master of Divinity, 1990.
Harvard-Radcliffe College, A.B. in English, cum laude in general studies, 1985.
St. Paul’s School, Concord, NH.  Diploma summa cum laude with honors in English, religion, and mathematics, 1981.  Dickey Prize in studio art, 1980.

EXHIBITIONS
Crane Collection, Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA. “Contemporary Sculpture”, 2008
Shriver Hall Concert Series, Baltimore, MD. “Face the Music”, 2006
NOA Gallery, Groton, MA.  “Artwalk”, 2004
National Sculpture Society, “Angels, Cupids, and Creatures of Winged Fantasy”, 2002
National Sculpture Society, Annual Exhibition, 2001
Armory Art Center, West Palm Beach, FL. “Figurative Works Competition”, 2001
National Sculpture Society, “Going for the Gold” sports sculpture exhibition, 1996
National Sculpture Society, “Making Faces” portraiture exhibition, 1996
National Sculpture Society, Annual Exhibition, 1995

AWARDS
Ministry and Liturgy BENE Award for “Annunciation”, 2003
National Sculpture Society, People’s Choice for Best Sculpture for “Annunciation”, Annual Exhibition at Brookgreen Gardens, 2001
National Sculpture Society, C. Percival Dietsch Prize for “Mark”, 1995

PRESS
Harvard Magazine, January-February 2010
Rowing News, January 2010
The Boston Herald, October 16, 2009.
Harvard Gazette, October 15, 2009.
row2k.com, October 12, 2009.
Gloucester Daily Times, April 24, 2008.
The Middlesex Beat, June 2004.
Carolina Arts, 2001.