In 1982,
one of my professors at the Corcoran College of Art & Design, Washington,
DC (yes, that Corcoran) said that you could sweep the studio floor and
put it into the artwork I was making.
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| "The Spirit of Myth", 2004, 88" x 66", Latex Enamel, dirt, kitty litter, & wood chips on canvas James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
It was 15 years before I actually did that, but the essence of the comment was about making artwork that used the stuff of life as a medium. This concept has led me to embed tree branches, bark, and leaves, or hay in paint, and employ parts and processes from a 24-year career as a cabinet maker into decades of artwork.
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| "Chiaroscuro", 2015-18, 48" x 72", Latex enamel, hay, bulrushes, kitty litter on plywood panel. James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
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| Detail, "Chiaroscuro", 2018, latex enamel, hay, bulrushes, kitty litter on plywood panel. |
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| Installation view, 2014-18, acrylic on canvas. |
But the 2008 financial crisis forced a retirement from cabinet making and changed everything. I joined the staff of a missions-based ministry that I’d been volunteering with in southern Appalachia. We did mission day trips every week, where I experienced the necessity, the power, and the joy of serving “the least of these.”
Now, 10
years later, I have reconnected with that passion as a volunteer for the United
Community Action Network (UCAN) food bank in Roseburg, Oregon. This portfolio is based on that volunteer
work, both emotionally and by “using the stuff of it” as a medium.
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| "Portrait Box", one of 4 sides, 2018, 20" x 16" x 10", Black & white gesso, latex paint on banana box. James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
"Portrait Box Rotation", 2018, Black & white gesso, latex paint on banana box.
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| "Food Insecurity", 2018, 96" x 80", Black gesso & latex paint on deconstructed banana boxes, stapled to loading pallets. James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
The food distribution system, from the Oregon Food Bank in Portland, to UCAN, to the food pantries and recipients in Douglas County, relies on banana boxes as carriers. As such, banana boxes are the natural choice for a substrate, along with loading pallets, to depict issues of food insecurity.
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| Proposed Installation, 24 units, 20" x 16" x 10" Black & white gesso, latex paint on banana boxes James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
This portfolio speaks of my personal history in exploring art materials, of hands-on ministry, of experience in food distribution, and passion for confronting food insecurity.
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| "The Light Shines Through Our Imperfections", 2018, 40" x 48" Black & white gesso,latex paint on deconstructed banana boxes, stapled to loading pallet, with two florescent lights. James Thatcher copyright 2018 |
My biography is reflected directly in my art practice.
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