About the Artist
Kelly Deal
Art Educator in Residence | Certified Art Educator (FL)
About Kelly
Kelly Deal serves as the Art Educator in Residence at The Joe Center for the Arts and is a certified art educator in Florida. With a passion for fostering creativity and cultivating confidence, Kelly is dedicated to inspiring students of all ages to explore their artistic potential.
Education
Kelly’s artistic journey began at South Forsyth High School and continued at the University of North Georgia. She earned her degree in 2010 from Piedmont College in Demorest, Georgia, where she further honed her skills and developed a deep appreciation for diverse art forms.
Career
Kelly began her teaching career in North Georgia before making her way to Port St. Joe, where she currently teaches. In 2021, she taught in Wewahitchka and is now looking forward to sharing her passion for art with the students of PSJ Elementary.
Before settling in Port St. Joe, Kelly spent three years teaching in a private school setting, where she played an instrumental role in developing a strategic art curriculum and a sustainable agriculture program. She is deeply committed to a wide array of artistic media and enjoys exploring new techniques alongside her students, whether they are youth or adults.
Kelly's teaching philosophy is centered around encouragement, helping students find confidence in their creativity. She is excited to inspire and ignite a spark of imagination in the future generations of Port St. Joe!
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Educator Artist Teacher Speaker
Kelly’s Story
Hey, my name is Kelly Buice Deal. I was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1983. I have always loved creating, drawing, and imagining. As a young adult, this “talent” or “gift” became a handicap in my education due largely to my arrogance and ego. I was an unteachable art student. I felt that because I could draw well meant this was all I needed to know. (Years later, I can humbly admit…there is much more to it. If you feel you know more than your teacher, you should go ahead and leave the room because you are wasting everyone’s time.) I studied art at North Georgia College and State University (today, known as North Georgia University). As a member of the Toccoa Artists Guild I studied soft pastels. The bold marks and the way the colors could pack into the sanded paper intrigued me. All of my art at that time was completed in the Appalachian foothills in soft pastel, acrylic or graphite. In 2020 my family left northeast Georgia for Port Saint Joe, Florida. I am the art teacher at Port St Joe Elementary. Having been so inspired by the bay and the colorful lifestyle of the panhandle, my personal style has evolved. My colors are ever brighter and lighter. The joy I see daily around me has influenced a whimsical shift in my content. I have experienced a fantastic renaissance of my own and I create with childlike passion now. I have never met a color I didn’t like.
