Keely Mikkelsen grew up in Southern California and graduated in 2021 from Cal State Fullerton with a BFA in Entertainment Art/Animation. In 2022, she joined the Idyllwild Arts community as a Gallery Assistant for the Summer Program, and taught Digital Painting the following summer. In 2024 she joined the Marketing team year-round at IA, and in 2025 became Digital Painting Faculty for the Academy. 

Keely is an illustrator and comic artist, currently working as a mobile game artist on Treasure Party. Past clients include Nike, Netmarble F&C, The Sunflower Club, and Digital: Comic Book Series. She previously taught Visual Development and Digital Concept Painting at Azusa Pacific University.