Skip to main content

Jay Kelly Sculptures

American, b. 1961
"I’m not going to talk about my work." A cloud of defiance as thick as the smoke of his cigar wafts over him as he dabbles solder onto a tiny metal sculpture. He never had respect for conventions, rules… not even time. Just like his obsessively labored sculptures Jay Kelly seems to move fluently through centuries. Not agreeing on the now. His pieces tell a story of yearning for a time that never existed. Like props or artifacts from a world just beyond reach - that seem all too familiar but, then again, elude understanding. This small-scale work ranges from burdened to playful. From imposing to delicate. Alone, they stand tall and proud at all but 6 inches. Together the pieces form a unity, a tiny city of sorts. Created on a small folding table in NYC, these pieces feel influenced by their surroundings. With hints of old Americana, city brutality, grace, elegance, cast away curb-side items, industrial landscapes, busted tires and washed up buoys. "I like to refine my shapes over the years. I feel like I’m getting closer to the purest forms and shapes that turn me on," Kelly absentmindedly says about his work. "They have to have a certain weight," he continues, now filing at tiny metal flanges. "See… I’m a tinkerer… that’s what I do". -Suzanne Levesque Jay Kelly was born in 1961 and received his B.A. from Syracuse University in 1983. Originally a photorealist painter, Kelly shifted his focus towards abstraction in the late 1990s. Moving away from his remarkably rendered realist paintings, Kelly’s practice evolved into a completely anti-representational body of work. Calling to mind the work of Martin Puryear, Paul Klee, Alexander Calder, and Tim Burton, the work’s clean lines and minimal aesthetic also allude to 20th century modernist architecture and furniture.
to
1
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
1
1
1
1
7
214
212
140
128
1
Artist: Jay Kelly
Untitled #243 Sculpture by Jay Kelly
Untitled #243 Sculpture by Jay Kelly

Untitled #243 Sculpture by Jay Kelly

By Jay Kelly

Located in Morton Grove, IL

Jay Kelly Untitled #243 sculpture Polychrome, wood and metal 10.25 x 2 x 2" signed by artist 2010

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Related Items
Plaything by Peter Brooke-Ball - rock sculpture, abstract
Plaything by Peter Brooke-Ball - rock sculpture, abstract

Plaything by Peter Brooke-Ball - rock sculpture, abstract

By Peter Brooke-Ball

Located in Paris, FR

Plaything is a unique Jesmonite, bamboo and pewter sculpture by contemporary artist Peter Brooke-Ball, dimensions are 25 × 18 × 15 cm (9.8 × 7.1 × 5.9 in). The sculpture comes with...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Stone, Metal

Viga 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, resin, synthetic, mineral, life
Viga 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, resin, synthetic, mineral, life

Viga 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, resin, synthetic, mineral, life

By Tom Price

Located in Paris, FR

Viga 4 is a sculpture by contemporary artist Tom Price. This sculpture is made of resin, tar, steel, wood, dimensions are 242 × 45 × 45 cm (95.3 × 17.7 × 17.7 in). The indicated dime...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Astro 015 - Original Mixed Media Figurative Moon Rock Table or Desk Sculpture
Astro 015 - Original Mixed Media Figurative Moon Rock Table or Desk Sculpture

Astro 015 - Original Mixed Media Figurative Moon Rock Table or Desk Sculpture

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Kevin Perrault’s sculptural work exists at the intersection of permanence and play, blending monumentality with quiet intimacy. Working primarily in copper and stone, his figurative ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Stone, Copper

Viga 1, 2, 3 & 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, steel, resin, column
Viga 1, 2, 3 & 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, steel, resin, column

Viga 1, 2, 3 & 4 by Tom Price - Abstract sculpture, wood, steel, resin, column

By Tom Price

Located in Paris, FR

Viga 1, 2, 3 & 4 is a group of sculptures by contemporary artist Tom Price. These sculptures are made of resin, tar, steel, wood. Overall dimensions are 242 × 180 × 45 cm (95.2 ×...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Abstract Domino Wall Relief in Ultramarine Foam Clay and Enamel on Wood
Abstract Domino Wall Relief in Ultramarine Foam Clay and Enamel on Wood

Abstract Domino Wall Relief in Ultramarine Foam Clay and Enamel on Wood

By Vera Vizzi

Located in FISTERRA, ES

Abstract domino wall relief in deep ultramarine foam clay and enamel on solid wood, a mixed-media sculpture that explores play, accumulation and rupture. This mixed-media domino pan...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Enamel

Ultramarine Foam Clay Wall Sculpture Domino Relief on Wood Panel, Domino Two
Ultramarine Foam Clay Wall Sculpture Domino Relief on Wood Panel, Domino Two

Ultramarine Foam Clay Wall Sculpture Domino Relief on Wood Panel, Domino Two

By Vera Vizzi

Located in FISTERRA, ES

Domino 2 is a sculptural domino panel (15 x 30 x 4 cm) executed in hand-modeled foam clay with enamel and acrylic washes applied over a solid wood board. This mixed-media domino reli...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Enamel

Carbon M by Tom Price - Sculpture and bench, coal, Jesmonite, wood, steel, black
Carbon M by Tom Price - Sculpture and bench, coal, Jesmonite, wood, steel, black

Carbon M by Tom Price - Sculpture and bench, coal, Jesmonite, wood, steel, black

By Tom Price

Located in Paris, FR

Carbon M is a unique sculpture by contemporary artist Tom Price. This sculpture is made of coal, Jesmonite, wood, steel, dimensions are 45 cm × 220 cm × 35 cm (17.7 × 86.6 × 13.8 in)...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Steel

She survived, but her heart broke into a thousand pieces and drifted out to sea
She survived, but her heart broke into a thousand pieces and drifted out to sea

She survived, but her heart broke into a thousand pieces and drifted out to sea

By Anastasia Pelias

Located in New Orleans, LA

Anastasia Pelias was born in New Orleans, LA to a Greek immigrant mother and a first generation Greek-American father. She received her BFA from the Newcomb College of Tulane Univers...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Lunar Crater Modular Wall Sculpture Blue and White Foam Clay Relief on Wood
Lunar Crater Modular Wall Sculpture Blue and White Foam Clay Relief on Wood

Lunar Crater Modular Wall Sculpture Blue and White Foam Clay Relief on Wood

By Vera Vizzi

Located in FISTERRA, ES

Foam clay relief on black wood panel, foamed sculptural surface with acrylic and enamel finish, a modular domino-style tile conceived for multi-unit wall installations. This mixed-me...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Enamel

Modular Domino Wall Sculpture With Foam Clay Fried Egg Motif on Black Wood Panel
Modular Domino Wall Sculpture With Foam Clay Fried Egg Motif on Black Wood Panel

Modular Domino Wall Sculpture With Foam Clay Fried Egg Motif on Black Wood Panel

By Vera Vizzi

Located in FISTERRA, ES

Mixed-media wall panel with foam clay fried egg motif on black lacquered wood domino panel combining playful humor sculptural relief and tactile acrylic surface. This mixed-media pa...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Enamel

Variation on a Theme II: Avoidance by Peter Brooke-Ball - Abstract sculpture
Variation on a Theme II: Avoidance by Peter Brooke-Ball - Abstract sculpture

Variation on a Theme II: Avoidance by Peter Brooke-Ball - Abstract sculpture

By Peter Brooke-Ball

Located in Paris, FR

Variation on a Theme II: Avoidance is a unique bronze, steel and oak wood sculpture by contemporary artist Peter Brooke-Ball, dimensions are 23 cm × 24 cm × 24 cm (9.1 × 9.4 × 9.4 in...

Category

2010s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Bronze, Steel

Keyboard 281 - Mixed Media Metal Wood Stone Contemporary Art Wall Sculpture
Keyboard 281 - Mixed Media Metal Wood Stone Contemporary Art Wall Sculpture

Keyboard 281 - Mixed Media Metal Wood Stone Contemporary Art Wall Sculpture

Located in New York, NY

Linda Stein, Keyboard 281 - Mixed Media Metal Wood Stone Contemporary Art Wall Sculpture In the 1990s Linda Stein began to work on a series called Blades, sculptural works that inco...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Jay Kelly Sculptures

Materials

Stone, Metal

Jay Kelly sculptures for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Jay Kelly sculptures available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Jay Kelly in metal, wood and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large Jay Kelly sculptures, so small editions measuring 2 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Walter Robinson, Melanie Yazzie, and Jan Huling. Jay Kelly sculptures prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $6,200 and tops out at $6,200, while the average work can sell for $6,200.