"Modern Color Study Variation #8" Painting

James approaches contemporary art as a dynamic conversation between abstraction and reality. He actively searches for visual metaphors that evolve through process, letting materials, form, and imagery shape a work that ultimately resolves into its own visual logic. Each piece becomes an autonomous experience, rooted in the moment of making while engaging directly with the complexity of our present world. His work offers viewers a visual language that reframes familiar ideas through a modern, reflective lens.



While studying Art & Design at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, James developed a multidimensional creative approach shaped by influential mentors. Sculptor John Pai inspired his exploration of spatial relationships and the intersection of two and three-dimensional form. As a painting student of Mary Buckley Parriott, herself a student of Hans Hofmann and steeped in the Josef Albers/Yale tradition; James absorbed a rigorous foundation in color, perception, and structure. He further honed his skills working at her Huntington Bay studio and studying with artists like Faust, Bove, and Sonenberg.



In 1998, James joined the faculty at Pratt Institute’s School of Art & Design. Since then, he has integrated modern creative practices into his work as an educator, designer, and artist. His artwork appears in private collections across the United States and Italy, and he continues to exhibit regularly in New England and Brooklyn, New York—bridging contemporary discourse with hands-on exploration in both teaching and studio practice.