John McClelland

John Harold McClelland - SAVANNAH - John Harold McClelland, 96, of Savannah, Georgia and widower of Alice Marie Stephenson McClelland, died Monday morning, February 15, 2016, at his home and surrounded by his family. He was born in Stone Mountain, Georgia, in 1919. It was there and in Atlanta that he picked up the soft Southern drawl he carried with him until death. His father was a lawyer with a profitable practice, so the Great Depression had little effect on the McClelland's. By the time he entered grammar school, he knew that he wanted to be an artist. He even set up his own studio as a young boy and began imitating his favorite magazine illustrations. Influenced by the greatest illustrators of the '30s - John LeGatta, McClelland Barclay, Dean Cornwall, Al Parker, and, of course, Norman Rockwell - McClelland strengthened his art skills in a basement studio until he graduated from high school. After attending Auburn University, the Grand Central School of Art, and the Art Career School in New York, McClelland hoped to take his commercial art skills to New York and find a job as an illustrator at one of the city's many magazines. Instead he found himself stationed in San Antonio as a draftsman during World War II, illustrating training manuals for pilots, navigators, and bombardiers. Eventually, he landed a job at Kling Studios in New York, and some of his illustrations were accepted by Woman's Day and Collier's. By the 1950s McClelland was one of the top magazine illustrators in the country. He married Alice Stephenson, a fashion artist and fellow Georgian, and they had two children, Susan and Kirk. When Susan was two and a half, McClelland painted her portrait; little knowing that the picture would launch him on another career. Woman's Home Companion bought the painting; it later appeared in several advertisements and on the cover of the Kimball Christmas catalog. Soon McClelland was accepting commissions all over the country. John and Alice McClelland left Connecticut, where they had lived for thirty years, and moved in 1986 to a new home at The Landings. For someone whose career began in the poorly lit corner of a tiny basement in Georgia, John McClelland had certainly earned every accolade. McClelland's artwork earned him numerous awards and an international reputation. He then began a successful career designing limited edition plates and figurines, which sold worldwide. He is survived by a daughter, Susan M. McClelland and her significant other, Ron Franch; a son, James Kirk McClelland and his wife, Ellen; three grandchildren, John H. McClelland II, Michael McClelland and Leslie McClelland; and a great-grandchild, Marilyn. The family will receive friends from 4 until 6 o'clock Thursday at Gamble Funeral Service - 410 Stephenson Avenue. The funeral service will be held at 6 o'clock on Thursday in the chapel of Gamble Funeral Service conducted by The Reverend Dr. C. Jeffrey Garrison. Interment will be private. Remembrances: The Humane Society for Greater Savannah - 7215 Sallie Mood Drive, Savannah, Georgia 31406-3922. Please share your thoughts about John and his life at www.gamblefuneralservice.com. Savannah Morning News February 17, 2016 Please sign our Obituary Guest Book at savannnahnow.com/obituaries.