AN INDEPENDENT / ARTIST-RUN ENDEAVOR

  

 

TROPPUS PROJECTS was independently founded by Kelly Dietrick in 2017 as an artist-run space on a mission to support art & artists, hence the name SUPPORT backwards. For seven years, the programming consistently featured local artists while also bringing national and international artists to the community, presenting more than 40 exhibitions and the work of more than 200 artists, emerging to well-established. While the brick-and-mortar hosted its finale exhibition this spring, the work of supporting art and artists will continue in various new capacities moving forward with any emphasis on curatorial projects. Troppus Projects has always been a one-person operation, but it is fueled by collaboration, particularly with artists.

KELLY DIETRICK holds a BFA in Art with a minor in Philosophy from Kent State University, an MFA in Studio Art from Savannah College of Art and Design, and a post-graduate certificate in Instructional Technology. She began teaching at Kent State University in the School of Art in 2005, and recently joined their College of Architecture and Environmental Design faculty in the fall of 2022. In addition to teaching, Kelly is active as an artist in her studio as well as in her community, advocating for and working on several public art projects as both a facilitator and creator. For the last seven years (from 2017-2024), she independently owned and operated Troppus Projects, founding it as an art space on a mission to make contemporary art a regular part of regular life in her relatively small town. For now, Kelly happily resides in Kent, Ohio, but just as her two newly adult children are ready and eager for what’s next, so is she. With that in mind, she is currently committed to making time and space for new projects that continue to meaningfully expand her ongoing practice as a teacher, curator, and artist.