Statement
The figure is my primary theme; part of a quest to know the human factor that enables us to form a perception of an image. Strongly influenced by the radical brand of figurative modernism, my paintings are not conventional portraits but are embodiments of vitality and vehicles for interpreting that vital essence in plastic terms.
The issue of representation is no longer a matter of absolute likeness. Trusting my instincts means freeing the figure from the customary restraints painting imposes. The paintings represent not human beings but states of being human. In essence, the works become a search for self.
Bio
James Koskinas was born in Terre Haute, Indiana and raised in Scottsdale, Arizona. Always creative, he studied art at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California as a high school student during the summers after his family moved to the Bay Area.
Koskinas served in the U.S. Navy which after his enlistment lead to travels in the Carribean, Asia, Australia, Europe, North Africa and India. Upon returning home he studied art and creative writing. He also was an actor, participating in the Stanislavski Theatre of the West in San Francisco. For many years, he owned a construction company, specializing in remodeling Bay Area homes.
Currently, Koskinas lives, works and paints in Lamy, New Mexico with his partner, Julie Schumer, also a painter.
Born
Terre Haute, Indiana
Education
Attended California College of Arts and Crafts [art studies],University of California, Irvine [creative writing studies], Lesley College [art therapy studies]
Further art and design studies with California artists Robert Burridge and Bob Winston and New Mexico artist Dean Howell
Exhibitions
- 2003
- February, Solo show, Koskinas Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- October, Group Show, El Museo Cultural, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- 2004
- April, Solo Show, James Hart Exhibition Space, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- November, Two person show, SKF Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- 2005
- January to March, Group show, Farrell-Fischoff Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- March, Emerging Artists show, Scottsdale, Arizona
- April, Two person show, New Editions Gallery, Lexington, Kentucky
- May, Group show, Farrell-Fischoff Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- November, Solo show, Farrell-Fischoff Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- 2006
- June, Two person show, Farrell-Fischoff Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- October, Group show, New Editions Gallery, Lexington, Kentucky
- 2007
- October, Group show, Marziart, Hamburg, Germany