J.James Fighting for Self-Control

Discover Pattaya were delighted to attend the exhibition Fighting for Self-Control held at Flipper Art Space (Soi 8 Pattaya Beach Road) by British artist J. JAMES. We talked to him about his inspiration and the very personal thoughts behind his work. For J. JAMES approaches art as a mode of communication, a way of giving shape to his ideas and emotions. He finds the process therapeutic and bravely lays bare his feelings through works which often originate from poetry. Sometimes the poems are written directly onto the canvas, other times they remain hidden, but always they serve as the emotional foundation of the piece.

The works invite viewers to engage emotionally, and encourage them to think beyond surface impressions. For even though each piece reflects the artist’s own journey their abstraction allows for individual interpretation. James told me how he was at first unsure as to whether to describe and somewhat explain the pieces on display. Yet I found what he had to say extremely useful, giving an additional perspective to the visual art.For example, in a particularly bold work within a trilogy entitled “Paranoia”, James told me that the textural effect he had incorporated into the cube at the piece’s centre was to portray a sticky, tar-like substance, representing the feeling of paranoia that can stick like tar to our thoughts and emotions.

In another series “The Ideal and The Real”, ably translated into Thai by Khun Nut of Baan Pattaya, James explained that the paintings express a gap between our perfect understanding of concepts such as ethics, morals, politics and beauty and the actual reality. Thus the Platonic solid 3D shapes like cubes, and tetrahedrons become simple 2D shapes: triangles and squares in their reflections With works like these it is unsurprising that James cites philosophers Plato, Hume, and Wittgenstein as inspirational to his thinking. Whilst the words of poets including Shelley, Wordsworth and Allen Ginsberg are also named as literary favourites. Other influences span a wide range from Lichtenstein, and Monet to Bauhaus and Banksy.

However, throughout this collection the work is never derivative but rather unique in the melding of poetry, philosophy,art and mental health emotions. J. JAMES has created a space where viewers can pause, reflect, and perhaps even confront their own battles with works that invite contemplation. They demonstrate how art can serve as both an outlet for the artist and a mirror for the audience. A conversation between thought and feeling, the seen and the unseen. A reminder that the fight for self-control can be both an individual and yet universal experience.

For more information or to contact the artist directly write to [email protected]