Interview
James E. Powell
James E. Powell is a native of Birmingham, Alabama. He spent most of his life in Fine Arts and worked as a Mural Artist, Graphic Artist, Artist-in-Residence, Display Helper, Illustrator, Graphic Designer, Screen Printer, and Art Teacher. During his lifetime, he has done more than 30 exhibitions throughout the southeast.
What inspires you?
“Historical research and reading information concerning famous and distinguished people.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“Today, I am doing portraitures of Hip-hop rappers, sports figures, civil rights leaders, and scientists.”
How would you describe your work?
“My subject matter comes from people I know and people I have read about I try a variety of techniques using colored pencils, mixed media, in my work. My drawings/paintings are realistic as well as expressive.”
Which artists influence you most?
“There are several artists I really like; they are, Norman Rockwell, Ernie Barnes, Kadir Nelson, and Thomas Blackshear. They all tell stories in their work.”
“My subject matter comes from people I know and people I have read about I try a variety of techniques using colored pencils, mixed media, in my work.”
What is your creative process like?
“It depends on my subject matter. First, I look for information and I research/read about the subject. I do serval thumbnails of rough drafts about the subject and I ask myself the question ‘what is my emotional connection?’ or ‘how can I make it stand out?’ I might use symbols or geometric shapes or I may even enlarge the figure to do so.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“The role of the visual artists is to communicate an idea to the viewer and give an emotional outlet to express ones feelings concerning an event or memory.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“In February and March of 2025, my artwork was selected in the Wake Forest magazine 27587 a portrait of an artist an inspiring teacher embracing his artistic self. James Powell art was featured and selected with several with his alumni classmates at Alabama State University National Alumni art exhibition. My work was also selected the art at the river region at Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery, Alabama from October - December of 2024.”
