Joseph D. Kellar had a deep appreciation and understanding of Japanese art that began in the early 1950s while serving with the Air Force in Korea.
“It all started with a trip he took to Japan, where he first laid eyes on small pieces of inlaid enamel known as cloisonne,” said his daughter, Coral Stern. “The colors and shapes were extraordinary to him. It was one of the most beautiful things he’d ever seen in his life.”
Years later, Mr. Kellar parlayed his fascination for this art form and others into a successful antique business, which family members said served as his lifetime passion and profession.
“Joe was a true art and antique dealer, dedicated and extremely knowledgeable, whose pieces were only of the highest quality,” said Terry Dunning, a longtime Chicago-area auctioneer. “He was well-respected and known throughout the country, but besides all that he was just a wonderful guy to do business with.”
Mr. Kellar, 78, of Elburn, co-owner of Toby House Antiques, formerly in Wheaton and Oak Park, died of leukemia Monday, Dec. 5, in Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva.
Born in Kokomo, Ind., the son of a salesman whose work sent him all over the Midwest, Mr. Kellar spent most of his childhood in Oak Park and graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School in 1945. He went on to attend the University of Illinois, where he enrolled in a pre-military program that specialized in weather forecasting.
At the close of World War II, Mr. Kellar entered the Army and was stationed in Greenland for a couple years. He then transferred into the Air Force and served in Korea in the Korean War.
After his military discharge in 1952, Mr. Kellar returned to Chicago and later moved to Champaign, where he resumed his college studies under the GI Bill. He worked for several years as a manufacturer’s sales representative for a couple of bearing and fastener companies in Chicago.
In 1974, Mr. Kellar married his wife of 31 years, Barbara. The wedding ceremony was at the old Kane County Courthouse in Geneva.
“For two people who loved antiques and historic architecture, it was the perfect setting for a wedding,” said his daughter.
A year later, Mr. Kellar and his wife settled in Wheaton and opened a shop on Front Street called Toby House Antiques, which they named after their large collection of antique Toby mugs from England. The couple closed that store in 1979 and moved to Oak Park, where they reopened their shop under the same name on Oak Park Avenue. They closed that store in 1986, but continued participating in antiques shows.
“They had a lovely shop in Oak Park,” recalled his daughter. “It was the kind of store you’d walk into even if you weren’t shopping for antiques.”
Over the years, Mr. Kellar’s antique business took him and his wife all across the country, to major shows in New York, Texas, and Miami. It specialized in large sculptures of bronze and marble from the 19th Century, and boasted a clientele that included many well-known antique collectors, such as former Illinois Gov. James Thompson, family members said.
“They sold museum-quality paintings and antiques that were true pieces of art,” his daughter said.
In addition to his wife and daughter, Mr. Kellar is survived by three sons, Greg Kellar, Craig Moffett and Martin Moffett; a daughter, Tania Chizzo; a sister, Marjorie Behrendt; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Visitation has been held. Services will begin at 11 a.m. Friday in the funeral home.
