Richard W. James, Richard James

—Born, Tennessee

EDUCATION

2001BFA The University of Tennessee at Martin, Martin, Tennessee

2012Post Baccalaureate, Ceramics, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana

2016MFA Ceramics, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas

APPRENTICESHIPS & RESIDENCIES

2015Summer Artist in Residence, Zhenrutang, Jingdezhen, China

2016Artist in Residence, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tennessee

2017-2019Long-Term Resident, Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts, Helena, Montana

PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE

2012—Studio Artist

BIOGRAPHY

Richard W. James in known for figurative mixed media sculpture. Works revolve around the bust or the full figure in various scales. Sculptures are most often developed using earthenware in combination with textile, metal or wood and frequently found elements. Ceramic surface treatment features underglaze application. After firing, various cold working surface techniques are used. The majority of James' figures are completed with carefully positioned found and modified objects.

The artist often uses himself as subject matter. The content for most works is a nuanced self-examination. James is ultimately interested in the factors that helped shape him including rural upbringing and culture, self-sufficiency, and the craftsman. His work is narrative and focuses on the portrait bust, the individual figure and the tableau.

James has this to say about his work, “I have always struggled to navigate between pride in my rural heritage and the need to distance myself from it. To better understand the "soup" in which I was stewed, I incorporate materials and processes associated with rural poverty. Mending clothes and constructing dwellings represent the feminine and masculine aspects of my upbringing, while clay stands for me. Inconsistencies between how we see ourselves and how we would like others to see us can lead to different versions of truth and history.”[1]

[1] https://www.sculpture.org/studentawards/2016/recipients/james.shtml (10/30/2018)