Kelli Vance’s photorealistic paintings often investigate psychological spaces where anxieties, sexuality and identity are explored as she sets out to produce images that are both seductive and alienating. Her process involves staging a scene, often using herself as the protagonist, then taking photographs which will become studies for the final painting. The viewer's perception of the female characters is carefully directed by the artist. Sharply cropping these images to dramatic effect enhances the mystery but also serves to highlight Vance's skillful rendering of colorful details such as draping fabrics and abstracted backgrounds.
Kelli Vance (b. in Garland, TX in 1983) currently lives and works in Houston. She received her BFA from University of North Texas and her MFA from the University of Houston in 2008. Vance was a finalist for the Hunting Art Prize in 2013 and completed the Roswell Artist Residency Program in Roswell, New Mexico in 2008. Recent exhibitions include solo shows at Cris Worley Gallery, Dallas in 2020, the Texas Biennial Anniversary Show at Big Medium, Austin in 2013 and at Samuel Freeman Gallery, LA in 2011.