ICON.
work by Richard James
April 3 - May 2

Although Richard W. James’s sculptures have appeared in shows around the world, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi assistant professor of art will enjoy his first solo Texas exhibition close to his newly adopted hometown.

Featuring work created specifically for the exhibition, Icon. will run Friday, April 3, through Saturday, May 2, at Rockport Center for the Arts. Employing materials and methods learned from his childhood in the rural south, James’ unique sculptures feature ceramic heads, hands, and feet with a soft cloth body, embroidered clothing, and found objects often accompanying the toy-like figures. 

“These hard and soft materials/methods have come to represent the traditionally feminine and masculine facets of my rural upbringing,” said James in describing the origins of his process. “The clay in my sculptures—a combination of both masculine and feminine—has come to symbolize myself within this trifecta.”

James’s body of work meditates on understanding the lenses in which the artist has come to understand his surroundings and world view. Each work seeks to question the  veneer of authority applied to historical events and advocates for taking back ownership of narrative, personal morality, and the use of iconography within this process. 

“James’s work is full of ironic juxtaposition” said Elena Rodriguez, curator of exhibitions for Rockport Center for the Arts. “The hard and soft. High Art with Low. Neoclassical aesthetics take on a feeling of patheticism, while the expert craftsmanship is often defaced by the artist’s own hand.” 

James began working with ceramics during his undergraduate studies at the University of Tennessee at Martin, continuing his work with the medium at Indiana University and University of Kansas, where he earned his MFA in Ceramics. In 2019, he moved to Corpus Christi after accepting an assistant professor of art position at Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi.

 Featured five times in Ceramics Monthly and profiled in Hi-Fructose Magazine, James held artist in resident positions at The Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, Mont. (2017-2019); Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tenn. (2016-2017); and Zhenrutang in Jingdezhen, China (summer 2015). His work is part of permanent collections at the Holter Museum of Art and Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts in Helena, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, the Martha Vida Collection, the Porter-Price Collection, Kolva-Sullivan Collection, and Zhenretang Permanent Collection in Jingdexhen, China. He has been in over 44 exhibitions across the USA, Europe, and Asia.

 Rockport Center for the Arts is located in downtown Rockport, at Estelle Stair Gallery, 406 S. Austin Street. The gallery is regularly open to the public Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. and admission is always free. Visit rockportartcenter.com or call (361) 729-5519 for more information.