who i am in a nutshell.

The name is Kelly McMasters. I was born and raised in Indianapolis, IN; a beautiful, growing city and has so much more to offer than just corn. I didn't roam too far to complete my bachelor's degree at Ball State University in Muncie, IN. I graduated with a degree in Visual Communication in 2014 and have been working in the industry and freelancing since. The opportunities to travel, meet new people, and experience a life outside of my own is what keeps my life and creativity batteries charged.

I had the privilege of living in Minneapolis, MN for four years before making my way to the southwest, where I grew my queer, creative community in Phoenix, AZ for nearly 5 years. In 2025, I had the opportunity to explore the US on a quest to find where might feel like home. As of 2026, I am residing in Kansas City, MO; the place my gut drew me to. It turns out there are surprises along the road if you just slow down to look.

Balance makes us stronger, more knowledgeable, and multifaceted beings. With balance we can fail, succeed, and learn without completely loosing ourselves. Even when one area of our life struggles, those other components in life keep up grounded. That's why I'm constantly trying to keep my life balanced with new information, strong relationships, but by also making sure to take care of my own personal health and growth.  Here are the main categories in life I work to keep in check

the self  -  relationships  -  health  -  career  -  learning  -  free-time

This not only helps build a stronger character, but each new lesson learned feeds another category of my life. So travel may spark inspiration for a new art project. Or an art project may help me make more conscientious choice about environmentally healthy purchasing decisions.  Or a new art medium that I explore in my free-time may expand my resources to use while creating a new design. In an ideal world, balancing would be a standard task, but in reality, it's a hard. Like really hard. But I've never been one to turn down a challenge. So here's to the ongoing challenge of keeping a balanced, full life. Check out some projects that have fueled my desire to balance passion with art and learning.