Keith MacLelland Feature

Keith MacLelland

Professor MacLelland works and teaches in both traditional and digital mediums, and brings a wealth of experience to the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University.

Faculty Keith MacLelland Keith MacLelland
Professional Title:  Assistant Professor of Illustration
Areas of Academic Focus and Expertise:  
Experimental, Digital, and Entrepreneurial Illustration
Area of Work and Concentration at Lesley:  
Illustration Department
Representative List of Recent Courses Taught:  
Illustration Now; Principles of Illustration; Digital Illustration - Painter; Experimental Illustration; Junior Studio for Illustration; Senior Studio for Illustration
Education:  MFA, Visual Studies, The Art Institute of Boston (2008); BFA, Illustration, The Art Institute of Boston (1998)
Representative List of Recent Publications / Exhibitions:  

Publications:
  • Creative Quarterly No. 23, Spring 2011 
  • 3x3 Directory of Illustration No. 7 2011 
  • The Painter 12 WOW! Book, Cher Threinen-Pendarvis, 2011, Peachpit Press, Berkeley, CA
  • MFAconnects@POSTAIB.edu Multi-City Traveling Exhibition, Catalog, 2011 
  • The Painter 11 WOW! Book, Cher Threinen-Pendarvis, 2010, Peachpit Press, Berkeley, CA
  • MacWorld: San Francisco Digital Art Gallery (exhibit catalog) 2009
 
Exhibitions:
  • “Annual Horror Ho-Down” Fourth Wall Project, Boston, MA 2011
  • “On the Edge” Hopkinton Center for the Arts, Hopkinton, MA 2011
  • “Showcase Exhibition” Boston Convention Center, Boston, MA 
  • “Hot Wood Volume III” Public Assembly, Brooklyn, NY 2011
  • “The Second Dimension” Yes Oui Si Gallery, Boston, MA 2011
  • “Arts in Bloom” Hopkinton Center for the Arts, Hopkinton, MA 2011 
 

Fun Facts:  
I enjoy sailing and kayaking, and am passionate about old wooden boats; I’ve fully restored a Mansfield wood and fiberglass canoe to show quality, and even hand carved mahogany and ash paddles to compliment it; I also have a big sweet tooth and would happily eat cake for breakfast on a daily basis, extra icing please.

I bring to the classroom both passion and respect for my craft, as well as a strong desire a desire to share this with my students. I bring respect for the student’s growth and pursuit of a unique visual voice. My approach to teaching is to be firm, fair, and flexible. Being flexible in the classroom, making room for other voices increases the value of the experience for both the student and the instructor. It’s also my feeling that although setting expectations and sticking to them is crucial to a lesson plan, it is equally important to understand the student perspective and be willing to meet them on their own individual terms. Through one on one instruction each student leaves my classroom with not only imagery they can be proud of, but with tools that are both practical and applicable to a career as a professional Illustrator.