Artist Gallery

Alessandra Kelley

Alessandra Kelley is a painter and textile artist based in Chicago. Her work has been exhibited internationally and used on book covers, posters, and the cover of "Black Gate," a science fiction magazine. In 2006 she arranged and curated "Otherworldly Chicago," a three-artist exhibit at the University of Illinois at Chicago, which showcased some of the strange perspectives artists have on the city.

Alessandra's work has long drawn upon mythology, juxtaposing the preternatural with modern street scenes, revealing layers of symbolism through fashion and allegory, and presenting the esoterica of philosophy in recognizable form. She is also interested in the materials used to make art; her paper "Safety Concerns for Pregnant Painters" remains one of the few resources on its topic. She has painted professionally for many years, making textile art and symbolic garments as a sideline. She is a specialist in the ancient medium of egg tempera. Recently she has begun to integrate her textile work with her paintings. She has collaborated with her husband, author Richard Garfinkle, on various artistic and technological projects.

Visit Alessandra Kelley at

• Alessandra's website, www.alessandrakelley.com
• Alessandra's blog, Confessions of a Postmodern Pre-Raphaelite.

Artwork: egg tempera on panel with manipulated photograph.