Ted McElhiney - Sculptor/Designer/Painter

Ted McElhiney was born in Kewanee, Illinois in 1931.  He has been an artist his entire life. After graduating from high school and serving in the Navy, he attended the University of Illinois, where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Art. He worked many years as a commercial artist and art director before starting his own advertising agency. After many successful years in business serving several Fortune 500 companies, Ted decided to return to school to study sculpture. He enrolled in graduate school at the University of Iowa.

After the sale of his advertising business, he turned to sculpting full-time.

He produces fine art of his own liking and does commissions for public, corporate, and individual requests. His main interest involves creating works of art featuring the human figure. His work includes many different materials, media, and approaches to the final result. He has done several sculptures located in the region.

The sculpture "Skipper" represents a young boy skipping stones on the Mississippi River and is located at Leach Park in Bettendorf, Iowa. In 1997, Ted was commissioned by Sandra Foster Miller to create a Children's Sculpture Garden in Vander Veer Park in Davenport, Iowa. He sculpted Sandra's three grandchildren to dedicate a lasting tribute to the child in everyone. He has also created a sculpture of two children in front of Plum Pavilion in the Old Mill Park in Savanna, Illinois. These are just a few of the sculptures he has created over the years.