Declan Kelly is an art teacher and multidisciplinary artist with nearly 20 years of teaching experience. Alongside his work in education, he has maintained an active artistic practice spanning: visual arts, theatre, curation and community engagement.
Originally trained in visual arts, with a specialisation in drawing, painting and printmaking, Declan’s practice has expanded to include film, costume and set design, festival programming, curating and collaborative community arts projects.
Declan has received numerous local and national awards in recognition of his artistic practice, including Arts Council Bursary and Agility Awards, the Arts Council Curator-in-Residence Award, the Arts Council Travel and Training Award, Creative Ireland grants, and Create Louth Awards, including the Tyrone Guthrie Residency Award.
His work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally, and he has participated in artist residencies in Ireland and abroad.
In the field of education, Declan has contributed extensively to arts learning and curriculum support. In recent years, he has been working with EDCO writing support materials for the Leaving Certificate Art & Design curriculum, and has appeared on panels for RTÉ and The Irish Times discussing and analysing Leaving Certificate examination papers.