Meet the Artist – MEGAN JAMES
We love supporting local artists and are so excited about our collaboration with Megan James, who is based in Jupiter, Florida. Megan created a collection for us of Krista’s favorite pieces and her paintings are available for purchase on our website. We recently sat down with artist Megan James to discuss her work.
When did you first realize you wanted to become an artist?
My mother and grandmother, who both have artistic talents, began telling me around 5 years old: “Meggie, you are an artist!” Whenever I had an opportunity, I always gravitated towards making things and drawing. My father even built a wood art table for me right in the living room, so I could do what I loved while everyone else watched television or hung out. Over the years, I tried some other career paths but naturally found my way back to art in everything I did! In 2016, I decided to finally develop a career as a full time artist/creative director.
What inspires your artwork?
The natural world is my main source of inspiration. In many ways, my paintings are a journal of the places that have moved me, given me perspective or changed my inner landscape. I find myself studying organic textures ,patterns, movement, light and shapes all found in nature and how they translate as a feeling. I noticed that I’m often trying to transmit the same ideas of wild beauty, grace and serenity but in my own visual languages, by changing the colors or materials. I also look for parallels in the natural world that can help me relate to my own life and then distill the message in my work.
Are there any artists that have influenced your style?
Lately, I’ve been enjoying the works of Jules Olitski, James Perkins and Zaria Foreman.
But my artistic influences often come from other forms of creativity, like music! I pose a question like “If this painting of the desert was a Jeff Buckley song, what would it look like?” Music helps me set a tone for a collection.
What was the creative process behind the pieces in our collection?
This collection is all about travel and capturing the essence of a place. The Indigo Water paintings are all snapshots of moments with water here in South Florida and the Mediterranean Sea from the coast of Santorini. The water takes on different energy and colors based on the backdrops of the environment around it. But no matter where I visit water, it feels like a familiar friend and a through line in who I am. I wanted to focus on the graduation of deep blue, the depths of the water and the rhythmic patterns. All of the desert pieces were inspired by a trip that my boyfriend surprised me with to the Mojave Desert and Death Valley in 2021. I was able to take on an abstract interpretation with the desert pieces because the scenery is so out of this world, wild and raw. “The Warmest Sounds” shows that It can be encapsulated as a feeling so well with just one subdued color.
What do you want collectors to take away from your art?
I hope collectors find pieces of who they are in relation to the natural world when they see my work. I hope it anchors them to the feelings associated with natural elements like the flow and rhythm of water or the feelings of stability in a warm rock formation. I also hope my work serves as an invitation outside! Adventure!
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not painting?
I have two daughters, so I enjoy doing creative things and cooking with them. We love going to the Norton and exploring local art. When I’m alone, I love running and adventuring by foot. I live in downtown West Palm Beach, so I can go in any direction and find beauty, nature and gorgeous architecture, which makes exercising outside so fun. I wrote an article last year and mentioned that running is how I paint when I’m not painting and that really rings true for me because it shows me how to push past the hard parts, like mental doubts and physical fatigue in order to reach the flow state. I have learned that on the other side of a challenging run and a finished painting is a new version of me, it’s very rewarding.
Are you an early bird or a night owl?
I am a proud member of the 5 am club! I adopted early rising two years ago and it has been the best, non-negotiable form of self-care for me! Waking up early upped my game as a mother and an artist, by allowing me to “wake up before the world.” I have a carved out moment to plan my day, work on something creative or exercise. By the time I start working, I’m lit up and ready to go!
Favorite colors?
Tans, and white! I love a good monochromatic look too!
What are your goals as an artist?
I look at my goals as an artist from a few different standpoints.
Personally, my goal is to always honor the hunger I have within me to create. It’s an urge inside me that makes me who I am and feel totally alive. Creatively, I hope to continue growing my skills and work practice. As a mother, I love to be able to show my daughters behind the scenes of a working artist and I can see the positive impact it has on their creativity. From a business perspective, I have been penetrating new arenas with my work in the past year by becoming more bold and thinking BIGGER! My goals are to keep expanding my reach with designers, galleries and collectors.
