I was born in Chicago, raised in central Illinois and schooled in southern Illinois.  I’ve lived on both coasts and a lot of places (about 50) in between.   My wife and I traveled extensively in Eastern Europe in the early ‘90’s and kept an apartment in Budapest.  There I saw the treasures, first hand, of some of our most noted artists.  We also have a home in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, which we visit often. 

I studied Design at SIU under R. Buckminster Fuller in the ‘60’s.  That led to, first, being a Creative Director for General Electric and Motorola and, later, to running my own design firm for six and a half years.  In that lifetime I won awards in radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, direct mail, billboards, corporate identity programs, brochures, annual reports and catalogs.

Then, for decades, I chased the almighty dollar. 

On February 18^th, 2009 I took my first water-based oil painting class from Suzanne Frazier.  Still taking them.  

Kelso Ballantyne

Education

• BA in Communications, SIU, Carbondale, IL (studied under R. Buckminster Fuller)
• Water-based Oil Painting with Suzanne Frazier, Longmont, CO

Experience     

• Creative Director, General Electric, Schenectady, NY & Chicago, IL
• Market Promotion Manager, Motorola, Schamburg, IL
• Owner, Ballantyne Design, Springfield, IL

Exhibitions  

Suburban Hill, Longmont, COStudio Tour: 2010 Prospect Studio Tour, Longmont, CO

Awards         

• First place ADDY for Direct Mail in 6^th District (IL, IN, MI)
• First place ADDYs for Radio, TV, Direct Mail, Magazines, Billboards, Brochures, Annual Reports, Catalogs & Corporate Identity Programs in Central Illinois 

Professional Affiliations        

Prospect Artists Association, Longmont, CO                        

I am inspired by love, family, community, nature, women, the Caribbean, Mayan culture and many of the European masters.  I love to observe the every day foibles we all share. For instance:  when you trip on the sidewalk, do you compose yourself first or do you look around to see if anyone witnessed it?  I am outraged by man’s inhumanity toward others and the self-serving idiocy of most politicians and corporate pillagers.

I paint  sea shores, dogs, kids, underwater scenes, Cubist inspired women  and more women.  I painted a “Bar Code” series, rich in symbolism and humor. 

Many of my paintings are large and they’re getting larger.