Jay McClellan is a professional artist who specializes in large-scale, animal portraiture that is widely recognized in the Philadelphia area by high-profile collectors including Chase Utley and the White Dog Café in Haverford and University City. Known for his bold colors juxtaposed with graphic patterns, Jay works primarily in the mediums of drawing and painting out of Jay McClellan Studio in the East Falls section of Philadelphia.
Born in Maumelle, Arkansas, Jay spent 10+ years in the graphic design industry. After a hard-fought battle and inevitable death of his mother from pancreatic cancer, Jay reevaluate his life and the reasons why and who he created his art for. Making the difficult decision to leave a lucrative career to pursue his passion, he went back school to receive a BFA from Memphis College of Art in Drawing and an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Studio Arts.
After graduating from PAFA, Jay was struggling to figure out how to survive as an artist, when he got a phone call from the owner of his gallery in Stone Harbor. The gallery owner said he had a college student there that really wanted to purchase one of his large dog paintings for her dad. It was only after delivering the painting that Jay discovered the young woman’s father was restaurateur Marty Grims owner of the White Dog Cafés. Over the next couple of years Jay and the Grims have work on several commissions for the White Dog Café in Haverford and University City where you can see the painting Marty’s daughter, Sydney Grims, gave him. Since then Jay has painted countless commissions for pet owners, and his works have been exhibited nationally as well as in private collections, winning awards including a Mabel Wilson Woodrow Fellowship Award at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and Honorable Mention at the 45th Annual Delta Exhibition.
Inspired by the extraordinary personalities (and quirks!) of his own dogs, Tip, Honey, Lucky and Ava Belle, Jay infuses each portrait with the unique emotions of the dogs he’s painting. The result is a work of art that captures the true essence of a beloved friend, and also the healing joy and serenity that both art and animals bring into our world.
Jay is currently represented by Gravers Lane Gallery of Philadelphia, PA., Beacon Art ShortWave Gallery of Stone Harbor, NJ., DRAWL Southern Contemporary Art of Little Rock, AR and Northwest, AR., and Dog & Horse Fine Art & Portraiture in Charleston, SC. He is a teacher at Philadelphia University, Delaware County Community College, Darlington Art Center and the Main Line Art Center.
In my large-scale paintings that often depict dogs, I explore the visual concept of “flat space” by moving objects back and forth on the canvas’ two-dimensional plane, juxtaposing bold colors with graphic pattern and unique designs to excite my audience’s attention.
Indebted to modern and contemporary painters such as Alex Katz, David Hockney and Fairfield Porter, my large-scale paintings are inspired by my own dogs, my wife and my home. The calmness they bring me – and the happiness as well – I want to paint those ideas and share them with the families and pets for whom I commission paintings. - Jay McClellan
Born in Maumelle, Arkansas, Jay spent 10+ years in the graphic design industry. After a hard-fought battle and inevitable death of his mother from pancreatic cancer, Jay reevaluate his life and the reasons why and who he created his art for. Making the difficult decision to leave a lucrative career to pursue his passion, he went back school to receive a BFA from Memphis College of Art in Drawing and an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Studio Arts.
After graduating from PAFA, Jay was struggling to figure out how to survive as an artist, when he got a phone call from the owner of his gallery in Stone Harbor. The gallery owner said he had a college student there that really wanted to purchase one of his large dog paintings for her dad. It was only after delivering the painting that Jay discovered the young woman’s father was restaurateur Marty Grims owner of the White Dog Cafés. Over the next couple of years Jay and the Grims have work on several commissions for the White Dog Café in Haverford and University City where you can see the painting Marty’s daughter, Sydney Grims, gave him. Since then Jay has painted countless commissions for pet owners, and his works have been exhibited nationally as well as in private collections, winning awards including a Mabel Wilson Woodrow Fellowship Award at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and Honorable Mention at the 45th Annual Delta Exhibition.
Inspired by the extraordinary personalities (and quirks!) of his own dogs, Tip, Honey, Lucky and Ava Belle, Jay infuses each portrait with the unique emotions of the dogs he’s painting. The result is a work of art that captures the true essence of a beloved friend, and also the healing joy and serenity that both art and animals bring into our world.
Jay is currently represented by Gravers Lane Gallery of Philadelphia, PA., Beacon Art ShortWave Gallery of Stone Harbor, NJ., DRAWL Southern Contemporary Art of Little Rock, AR and Northwest, AR., and Dog & Horse Fine Art & Portraiture in Charleston, SC. He is a teacher at Philadelphia University, Delaware County Community College, Darlington Art Center and the Main Line Art Center.
In my large-scale paintings that often depict dogs, I explore the visual concept of “flat space” by moving objects back and forth on the canvas’ two-dimensional plane, juxtaposing bold colors with graphic pattern and unique designs to excite my audience’s attention.
Indebted to modern and contemporary painters such as Alex Katz, David Hockney and Fairfield Porter, my large-scale paintings are inspired by my own dogs, my wife and my home. The calmness they bring me – and the happiness as well – I want to paint those ideas and share them with the families and pets for whom I commission paintings. - Jay McClellan
