Art Avenue - Ron Kelly

Ron Kelly - Cartoonist

Ever since I can remember, humour has played an important role in my life. One major influence was my father who enjoyed the reputation of being one of the town's biggest "hams" and who skillfully evaded stress by never taking anything too seriously (the corollary being that he also drove my mother nuts!). Being a carrier of this disease (except for the ham part) into my adult years, my relationships with family and friends have become riddled with "inside jokes" and looking at the lighter side of things has undoubtedly helped me to survive many a long and stressful day at work. But the idea of using humour as an actual career only surfaced recently. Let's face it, a degree in geology followed by 17 years in the Human Resources field does not naturally lead to a career as a cartoonist (although maybe that year in life insurance is what screwed me up!). However, prompted by the completion of my last HR contract, motivated by the desire to spend more time on the home front with our son, and excited by the realization that I might actually be able to make a living from home by doing something that I genuinely enjoy, I decided to launch my cartooning hobby into a career.

How did I get interested in cartooning? It began more than ten years ago when, frustrated by the lack of greeting cards that shared the warped sense of humour of my family and friends, I decided to create my own primitive cartoon cards. Recently I have become "Ron Kelly Cartoons" and have christened my single panel cartoon "Doomed" (not prophetic, I hope!).

"Doomed" combines many of my own life experiences to poke fun at life by taking a sometimes bizarre, outrageous, twisted and provocative look at the misfortunes of people and other creatures in precarious situations. It is designed to have universal appeal by addressing a wide range of subjects from current issues, to jobs, to education, to pets, to science, to aliens, to many others......a word of caution though.....NEVER take any of my cartoons seriously!

Ron Kelly

Ron Kelly
Nepean , Ontario

E-Mail: ronkellycartoons@hotmail.com