As a dedicated designer and artist, I have found a wellspring of inspiration in my experiences and interactions over the years.

I began as a visionary. Using my color and compositional skills to accommodate and infiltrate clients’ spaces, I have drawn art from the routines of Interior Design.

I began creating Art Furniture in the 1990’s to give voice to my personal vision. At the time artists were fomenting a movement to include functional art in the arena of fine art. Architects and designers were creating functional work to augment their portfolios and allow their work to be legitimized within that realm.

My approach concerns the meshing of a classical style and functionality with a contemporary inflection. All my metal work is produced under my close supervision at a foundry in Alabama. It is created and manipulated to fulfill my vision as an artist.

Kelly Gale Amen: Bio

Kelly Gale Amen, born in 1949, is a native of Weatherford, Oklahoma. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma (BA), Kelly moved to Houston in 1972 to begin his professional design career. He started his own design business, KGA Inc., in 1974 and has been an influential participant in the Houston arts & design community for decades. He is a founding member of NSID/ASID.

Kelly’s work has been featured in all available media, from a feature on HGTV’s Extreme Homes to frequent highlights and features on his design projects in the local print press. His work is published in books and magazines distributed nationally.

In the 1990’s Kelly began creating his own Art Furniture to give voice to his personal vision. At the time artists were fomenting a movement to include functional art within the arena of fine art. Architects and Designers were creating functional work to augment their portfolios and allow their artistic work to be legitimized within that realm. He is also a founding member of the American Society of Furniture Artists.

His KGA Triple Benches are on display as a permanent installation in Houston’s Shady Groves Victims Memorial at Tinsley Park. Kelly is proud to have had one of his Memorial Benches installed in Houston’s Bob Lanier Public Works Building. He also has his Art Furniture in the Houston Museum of Natural Science, The Thomas P Stafford Air and Space Center in Weatherford, Oklahoma, the National Route 66 Museum in Elk City, Oklahoma, to mention a few installations.

Kelly has thrown his support behind many charitable ventures throughout his career, adding his special slant on how to engage and reward those involved in fund raising as well as those receiving the benefit of those funds. Some of those organizations are: The Texas Children’s Cancer Center, Aids Foundation Houston, and most recently, the Zina Garrison Foundation.

Starting in 2007, Kelly branched out with the signed & numbered edition collections, partnering with Susan G. Koman for the Cure, The Stafford Air & Space Museum, and the Gay & Lesbian Elder Housing organizations.

With his activities ranging through tireless support of the arts to active participation as a creator of Art Furniture and sculpture, Kelly enjoys a reputation internationally for cutting edge concept and design.

SELECTED INSTALLATIONS, PUBLIC ART, EXHIBITIONS

“Functional Art - Functional Parts - Public Parks” Gallery TWO1FOUR, 214 Travis Ave, Houston, TX 77002. 29 Sept 2011.

“The Wildflower Bench” Permanent installation, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, 4801 La Crosse Ave, Austin, TX. In honor of Mrs. Laura W. Bush, former First Lady of Texas and the United States for her leadership, generosity, friendship and advocacy toward increasing the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants and landscapes.
Presented at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center’s 2011 Wildflower Gala and Silent Art Auction (13 May 2011)

“The Social Book 2011 and the Houston Area Lexus Dealers –Launch Party”
“Fifth Avenue Loft/Kelly Gale Amen Commemorative Art Furniture Collections”
Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, 800 Bagby, Houston, TX

"Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench" Permanent installation, St. Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital, 17200 St. Luke’s Way, The Woodlands, TX. Honoring the 20th anniversary of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s Houston affiliate chapter.

"Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford Commemorative Bench" Permanent installation, United States Embassy - Moscow. Bolshov Devyatinsky Per 8, Moscow, Russia.

"Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford Commemorative Bench" Permanent installation, Memorial Space Museum. 1111 Mira Prospect, Moscow, Russia.

"The Mermaid Project Bench" Permanent installation, Brazosport Cancer Center, 100 Medical Dr, Lake Jackson TX.

"Meet the Artist - Kelly Gale Amen" Hosted by the Brazosport Health Foundation and the Bluebonnet Social Club Committee, 400 College Dr, Clute, TX.

“Two KGA Triple Bronze Benches with Texas Granite”
Permanent installation, Houston Airport System. 16930 John F. Kennedy Blvd, Houston, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Chair”
Permanent installation, The Rose – Galleria Office, 5420 West Loop South, Ste 3300, Bellaire, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench”
Permanent installation, Houston Parks and Recreation Headquarters, 2999 S Wayside Dr, Houston, TX.

“Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford Commemorative Bench”
Permanent installation, Houston Parks and Recreation Headquarters, 2999 S Wayside Dr, Houston, TX.

“KGA Triple Bronze Bench with Texas Granite”
Permanent installation, James Bute Park. Historic Frost Town Site, Harris County, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise - Bronze Bench”
Permanent installation, Norman Brinker Board Room, Susan G. Komen for the Cure Headquarters, 5005 LBJ Freeway, Dallas, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench and Two Planters”
Permanent installation, Susan G. Komen for the Cure Headquarters, 5005 LBJ Freeway, Dallas, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench”
Permanent installation, Eleanor Tinsley Park, Houston, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench”
Permanent installation, The Rose Medical Plaza, 12700 North Featherwood, Ste 260, Houston, TX.

“Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Honoring the Promise – Pink Bench”
Permanent installation, Brazosport Cancer Center, 100 Medical Dr, Lake Jackson, TX.

“University of Texas at Austin Commemorative Bench” Permanent installation, University of Texas – Austin Intercollegiate Athletes Academic Center, Austin, TX.

“University of Texas at Austin Commemorative Bench” Permanent installation, St. Luke’s Hospital, Texas Heart Institute, 6770 Bertner Ave, Houston, TX.

“Lt. General Thomas P. Stafford Commemorative Bench”
Public Art Installation, Official Visitors Center of NASA’s Johnson Space Center. 1601 NASA Parkway, Houston, TX.

“Transformed Permanence”
The Historic Magnolia Brewery Building’s “Petal Gallery”,
Houston, TX

“Dinner in the Deuce”
Untitled [Art Space], Oklahoma City, OK

“No Shortage There”
Bering and James, Houston, TX

“1898 Weatherford, Oklahoma”
Permanent installation, Oklahoma State Art Collection
Gallery / State Capitol Building, Oklahoma City, OK

“Triple Bench Collection/Public Bench Collection”
Permanent installation, Looscan Library,
Houston, TX

“No Shortage Here – No Shortage There”
Islander Gallery, Corpus Christi, TX

“Art is the Good Life”
M2 Gallery, Houston, TX

“KGA Public Benches”
Permanent installation, The Thomas Stafford Air & Space Center,
Weatherford, OK

“KGA Reverse Curve Memorial Bench Dedication”
Permanent installation, The Jewish
Community Center of Houston, Houston, TX

“The Earth-Artists Responding to Violence”, “No Shortage Here”
FotoFest 2006, Bering & James Gallery, Houston, TX

“KGA Public Bench”
Permanent installation, James Butte Park, Houston, TX

“Art on the Avenue 2005 ‘tables’”
Avenue CDC, Winter Street Studios, Houston, TX

“Cinco”
Bering & James Gallery, Houston, TX

“KGA Memorial Bench Dedication”
Permanent installation, Houston Municipal Art
Commission 40th Anniversary Celebration, The Bob Lanier Public Works Building, Houston, TX

“Flow-Fluid-Flush”
FotoFest2004, KGA Compound, Houston, TX

Sculptures, GAIA
Curated by Esther Cardoso, Havanah, Cuba

“Shady Grove Plaza, Bronze Triple Benches with Stone Seats”
Permanent Installation, Eleanor Tinsley Park, Houston, TX

KGA Art Furniture
Living Out Loud Gallery, Aspen, CO

“Fire, Performance Burning Furniture”
KGA Compound, Houston, TX

“A FotoFest Fire”
Installation / documentation, Houston International FotoFest 2002,
KGA Compound, Houston, TX

“Heavy Metal”
Macon & Co., Fine Art, Atlanta, GA

ASID Showcase
Texas Association for Interior Design Exhibit, Sugar Land, TX

Kelly Gale Amen & Nall
Macon & Co., Fine Art, Atlanta, GA

Collaboration / Bayou City Cat Fish
Featured Co-Artist, Bayou City Arts Festival, Memorial
Park, Houston, TX

Bench Installation
Holy Name Retreat Center, Houston, TX

“Tablescapes”
Houston Pi Beta Phi Foundation, Houston, TX

“Westside”
Macon & Co., Fine Art, Atlanta, GA

Making a Mark
Featured Artist, Texas Children’s Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Bench Installation
National Route 66 Museum, Weatherford, OK

“Metals, Petals and Paints”
MD Modern, Houston, TX

Humidor Exhibition, Smoke and Mirrors
American Society of Furniture Artists, Houston, TX

Furniture as Art: Bronze, Aluminum & Iron
The Sculpture Center at Esperante, West Palm
Beach, FL

Furniture of the 90’s
1996 National Competition and Touring Exhibition

“Seven Triple Bronze Bench”,
Permanent Installation, Houston Museum of Natural Science,
Houston, TX

SELECTED COMMISSIONS

“KGA Donor Walls”
Mixed media commissioned by Friends of Neighborhood Libraries (FONL)
for the Looscan Neighborhood Library, 2510 Willowick, Houston, TX (installed 2007)

“KGA Memorial Bench, Bronze”
Commissioned by Municipal Arts Council Houston for the
Bob Lanier Building Lobby, 611 Walker, Houston, TX (installed 2005)

“Triple Bench with Fossil Stone Tops”
(6) for Shady Grove Plaza Victims Memorial, Eleanor
Park, City of Houston and Municipal Arts Council, Houston, TX

“Public Bench, Painted”
James Bute Park, Art & Environmental Architecture, Houston, TX

SIGNED & NUMBERED EDITIONS

“Tony’s Prostate Cancer Research Bench” in conjunction with Tony’s Prostate Cancer Research, headquartered in Houston, TX (ongoing collection).

“22nd Infantry Regimental Commemorative Bench” developed as part of the 22nd Infantry Regiment Society Fort Benning Memorial Project, as well as the National Infantry Museum (ongoing collection).

“I Ask Peace Bench”, The I Ask Peace Foundation, in conjunction with Families of Flight 93, Inc. (ongoing collection).

“The Wildflower Bench” in conjunction with The Wildflower Truck donated to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Headquartered in Austin, TX (ongoing collection).

“The Mermaid Project Bench”, The Mermaid Project, Brazosport Health Foundation, Headquartered in Lake Jackson, TX (ongoing collection).

“University of Texas at Austin Commemorative Bench”, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX (ongoing collection).

“1 in 8 Commemorative Bench”, Pink Ribbons Project, Headquartered in Houston, TX (ongoing collection).

“Honoring the Promise Collection”
Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, National Headquartered in Dallas, TX ( ongoing collection, nation-wide program )

Gay & Lesbian Elder Housing Bench Collection
Gay & Lesbian Elder Housing, West Hollywood, CA

Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford Astronaut Commemorative Bench
The Thomas P. Stafford Air and Space Museum, Weatherford, OK ( ongoing collection, nation-wide program )

Looscan Neighborhood Library
Friends of Neighborhood Library ( FONL ), Houston, TX

SELECTED AWARDS

Star of Design,
Charles S. Cohen and Decorative Center Houston,
“2008 Inaugural Star Design in the Field of Interior Design”

2005 Service with Love Award,
The Zina Harrison All Court Tennis Academy, “When I
Grow Up…” 2005 Fundraising Gala

Humanitarian of the Year Award,
AIDS Foundation, Houston, TX

Designer of the Year,
Traditional Homes Magazine

Artist of the Month,
September, ASOFA

 

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

“Artfully Furnished”, Southwest Art, June 1996
“Houston Style”, Houston Home & Garden, April/May 1997
“Signature Style”, Traditional Home Magazine, September 1999
“Kelly Gale Amen, An Interview with a Creator”, Les Avenues, September/October, 2001
“The Art of Fine Furniture”, Houston Home & Garden, Furniture as Art, March 2001
“Color Solutions”, Better Homes & Gardens, Books, June 2002
“Aluminum Inspired Furniture”, Light Metal Age, June 2002
“Moods”, ME Magazine, October/November 2002
“Spectacular Homes”, Publication, November 2003
“From Forests to Sea”, Houston House and Home Magazine, March 2005
“Kelly Gale Amen’s Dark and Stormy Décor”, Houston Chronicle, Gloss Section, October 2005
“The Radar Art”, Houston Magazine, March 2006
“Creators of Custom”, Houston House and Home Magazine, July 2006
“Shout Amen”, Houston Magazine, September 2006
“Have a Seat”, Antique Shops and Designers Magazine, Fall 2007
“Beautiful Homes of Texas”, Signature Publishing Group, Fall 2007
“All In The Family”, Atlanta Peach, October/November 2007
“Designed for Cooking”, ASID Texas Gulf Coast Designers, Summer 2009
“Houston’s Most-Photographed Men Offer Their Fashion Ideas, Gloss (Houston Chronicle), July 2009
“Perspectives on Design Southwest”, Panache Partners, Summer 2010
“Kelly Gale Amen – Functional, Philosophical Interior Design”, UrbanCityLifeTV.com, November 2010
“Famous Interior Designers: Kelly Gale Amen”, UrbanCityLifeTV.com, March 2011