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New Exhibition Spotlights Local Up-And-Coming Artist

FERNDALE — Detroit muralist Desiree Kelly will hold her first solo exhibit called "The Faces Of Music" at the Atom Art Gallery in Ferndale. The exhibition will run 6-9 p.m. May 5, showcasing artworks in Kelly's distinct urban styles of portraits created with oil paints, spray paints and collage on canvas.

Kelly's work can be seen and appreciated all over metro Detroit already. Some of her pieces can be found in permanent and temporary public collections including at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Building in downtown Detroit (the 11th Floor the office of Mayor Mike Duggan), Farmington Hills City Hall, Dpop, Kuzzo's Chicken and Waffles restaurant on the Detroit Avenue of Fashion, the Royal Oak VFW Building, as murals painted on the side of two buses for Detroit Bus Company, and inside the Spain Middle School Gymnasium - commissioned by talk show host Ellen DeGeneres.

"I am so excited to be given the opportunity to have my first solo exhibition at Atom Art Gallery. This is really a dream come true for me. I've been a professional artist for more than 15 years now, and to finally get a chance to curate my first solo exhibition is something I will never forget," she said.

Kelly earned her B.F.A from Wayne State University, studying graphic design and was introduced to oil painting there. Her love of portraiture was inspired by the neighborhood where she grew up on Beal Street on Detroit's eastside, she said. She then developed her style and passion for urban portraits.

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