James Mckenna

She asked me, "What's your favorite color." "Black," I said. "No, really," she said, "something that's not black." After some thought I answered, "Gray." I do use color, but in work from the last decade, It's usually the color of the material: Rust, weathered wood, brass, silver, gold.

Most of my steel works are made with salvage steel and wood. Many materials I use exactly as I find them. Fragile surface features of metal—often various shades of rust—are preserved with careful hardware attachment and final assembly. Wood backings—mostly oak—are salvaged from hard-used industrial pallets. The surface of each of these boards is burned with an intense flame. Inner wood retains its strength, but the surface is cracked and fissured.

Whether a material is raw, brightened, polished, burned or any of the other surfaces I use—all colors are inherent in the material. Steel appears in familiar gray, or it can be various hues of rust. It can even show colors natural to the metal when it is subjected to heat and glows red, yellow, or even white. Brass and copper may be bright or darkened with patina. Gilding is the butter yellow of pure gold.

Texture is essential. Unusual uses of industrial tools create a wide range of textures. Some piec...

MFA, University of Cincinnati, College of Design, Architecture, Art & Planning
MFA, English, University of Cincinnati

2023 Ready to Bolt, Group show, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH
2015-present Commercial gallery, Gallery Veronique, Montgomery, Ohio
2019 Nudes, Group Show, Manifest Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2012 American Craft Today, Group Show, The Bascom, Highlands, NC, Best of Show 2005 Fringe Festival, Group Show, Cincinnati, OH
2005 Deogracias Lerma Gallery, Solo Show, Cincinnati, OH
2003 Group Show (exhibitor and organizer), The Mockbee Gallery, Cincinnati, OH