JAMES ROBERT WHITE
About James
La Familia Series
‘La Familia’ is a direct translation from Spanish meaning ‘The family’. It also relies on the relation to the homonym the ‘familiar’ relating to the structures that work in the eye, to the brain, to blood vessels and the bloodline. This 'self-similarity' reaches right down to the mapped route of travel that my forefathers had to make to meet their eventual spouse throughout each of their independent journeys, meeting in a specific point in time. If you drew their independent journeys, the lines would look very similar to all the bifurcated structures common in complexity science, that can be seen in these paintings.
In this series, I also reference a huge variety of structures across time as well as space, as well as biological and physical entities working together in their own unique harmony, including the structure of the brain, the structure of genealogy, (the blood line). In addition to this, I am interested in the relationship to the portraiture of the past.
I have so much more to achieve within this series, these works are currently underway and will require a significant amount of time to get right. I am really enjoying the direction they are going in and will not set a time limit for completion as they are becoming more involved as they progress. All I can promise is that they will be very special to me and I hope the viewer enjoys them too. ​
Towers Series
The 'Towers' series is about the point in time when a new system of complexity enters an existing, natural state of chaos. One of the fundamental aspects of the series is a tongue-in-cheek nod to mythology, specifically, the ‘Tower of Babel’. Those familiar with the biblical story will see some references to the story and the parallels of the story's meaning with the series' structure regarding the languages of the various forms of science and the arts. Especially now that they are converging into the realm of interdisciplinary study between previously separate subjects, informing each of new and exciting possibilities.
I was thinking about drawing within the realm of a stable chaotic system. Allowing myself to run free and giving myself and the painting to chance, and into its natural order. The 'dots' and 'tails' underneath are the results of sown sand. Exactly like a farmer used to sow fields of corn by hand. This is how seeds and plants are positioned to grow. The ghosted lines are taken from the angles of lines that I have seen in a multitude of environments. Like tree branches or blood vessels on the back of my own hand. Some of the drawn lines were taken from road maps.
The series is not over, I feel I am not ready to let it go yet. In essence, there is more to build on. I think there is more to learn and I feel that more significant pieces are still to come from this.
