All my life, I have been an artist.  The most fun was sitting on the kitchen floor with a new box of crayons at hand and as most young boys drawing cars, cars and more cars.  At the age of 12, I received a scholarship to the James Nelson Raymond Fund classes at the Art Institute of Chicago and continued there through high school.  I attended and graduated from Chicago's American Academy of Art.

After serving as an illustrator for the United States Army in Vietnam, I began a career as a freelance illustrator in New York, joining the Society of Illustrators.

Circumstances brought me back to Chicago where I became an illustrator at Handelan Pederson Studio.  Once gaining maturity and experience, I became a partner at the 405 Group.  Currently, I am the proprietor of TPMcKee Illustration in Chicago.

My work is in private and commissioned national collections, including the Chicago Bears.  A list of my credits include the creation of the Brian Picollo Award Trophy; Revere Press Artist Competition; RSVP Portrait Competition, 2006; The University of Northern New Mexico's Celebration of the Woman Show, 2006; Liquitex 2007, December artist of the month, and the pleasure of participating in Chicago's prestigious One of a Kind Show in December, 2007.  I was selected as the first place winner of the Blue Moon competition held at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art, 2008.

I use color, composition and construction.  Color to catch the eye, composition for drama, and imagination is the drive.  I construct my art dimensionally for depth, juxtaposition, engineering constraints with painting expression.  It isn't easy, but man, I love it!

Life is a wonderful education and I take pleasure in sharing the art of imagination with the rest of the world.  I guess, no matter how hard we search, one's art ends up pretty much an autobiography.

- TPMcKee