Kingston, Jim
Member since November 24, 2004
I have been painting and illustrating for over 35 years. My work has appeared in many national editorial publications and advertising campaigns. I work in several media but primarily watercolor in a 'sharp focus' style.
Biography
I have been a painter most of my life and have worked as an illustrator, art director and teacher since graduating from art school 35 years ago. I paint in watercolors, oils and acrylics.
I like to paint things that are old but still in use and kinetic. I paint with an earthy palette befitting my subject matter. I paint things that are worn, that are used and used well. I paint things that evoke the spectre of the people that built and used them. The subjects of my paintings are usually scenes or objects that are close at hand. Like a pair of chairs in a friend's backyard or a barn side on the way home from Auntie's in rural Northeast Pennsylvania. Every summer we spend some time with my family on the Maine coast giving me many of my subjects. Many of my objects are cliched. But they're not cute they're rainy but not sad.
I paint my watercolors with transparent watercolor on plate finish, slick, paper. This technique allows the paint to be reworked and 'lifted' easily. More like oils than wet watercolor. The colors and surface texture are rich and almost dimensional. I try not to limit my visual expressions to just one style. I paint in both oils and acrylics.
I was an early innovator in computer graphics. I have build interactives since the term was coined. I'm an artist and a nerd. The tasks and creative energies of being both are more similar than different. The 'high' of brushing unexpected beauty is the same as writing a terse bit of code. While working as a freelance illustrator I also consulted with several of the largest publications and companies guiding them through the analog haze and around digital sinkholes. Along this strange journey I continued to paint but with less focus and output. For I had become digital. Today I use several digital techniques to create original images trying to emulate my watercolor style. One technique involves computer 3-D modeling. I create 3D models of my subjects rendering them in hi-res and stylized them into the focused realism of my paintings. Mostly these are 3d models created with the intention of simulating, in the good sense, my painting style and sensibility.
When I'm not messing around with paints or computers, I spend my free time hunting trout with my handmade flies, 'messing about in boats' or hunting grouse over my ?Decoverly English Setters Spenser and Bailey.
Address
- Address:
- 20 East 35th Street 5G
- City:
- New York
- State/Province:
- New York
- Postal Code:
- 10016
- Phone Number:
- 212-689-8988