Deceptively Cute: The Art of James Thurman

James Thurman looks friendly and wears solid-colored clothes, scruffy hair, and a long goatee. As we speak, I realize that the local artist is not the type to embark on long monologues about the significance and meaning of his work or his philosophies on art, even though I attempt to steer him in that direction. This attitude fits the light-hearted style of his recent paintings, which could be as easily experienced and understood by an eight-year-old as by a tenured art professor.

When first viewing the Popular Bluff native's work, I was reminded more of Adult Swim cartoons than any specific artist, although he clearly shares a kinship with Gary Baseman, who Thurman immediately identifies when I mention influences, and other Pop Surrealists. He adds, "I'm into Basquiat, Tim Biskup, Tim Burton, Edward Gorey, and Danny Elfman, who can help me become creative just by listening to his music."

Thurman also sees inspiration in children's drawings and Japanese cartoons. He even refers to his figures as "cutesy characters," something perhaps blasphemous to hear from a serious artist. He says "Japan is really big on those cute little cartoon characters. They're very simple but . . . can express so much with very little . . . Plus they're kinda cute in a weird way."

"After Image 1"

This may sound like an odd style, until you here more of Thurman's ideas: "I believe if you can create a piece that looks all cute and cuddly, but still have that under layer of unknown suspense, then it adds to the piece. Like you feel like petting it, but you're afraid you'll get bitten."

The complexity of Thurman's work, emotional and intellectual, comes through vivid colors, thick lines, and the twisted speech bubbles and body language of his basic cartoon figures. This style developed from another of Thurman's interests, comics, including the work of Bob Crumb and his own experience in strip writing. He talked more about his beginning as a comic artist: "I got started when I was six. I saw some comic strips that my Uncle had drawn and was really fascinated by them. I drew everyday after that. I found that art was more of an extension of myself. I could put myself down on paper, so to speak, give it to someone as, say, a card or just a doodle and make them laugh later on that day. That idea really appealed to me."

When he first started painting, he was also doing a lot of comic strips, and disliked the disparity he saw between the two. Thurman says that gradually he developed a style of painting the used more of his comic techniques, finding that he "liked the idea of the comic-strip feel" in a more artistic medium. Thurman says, "With the paintings I'm still trying to add a little extra oomph and show to people that paintings can be entertaining as well as stimulating."

"Conversation"

As his work in painting has developed, Thurman feels that it has become angrier, something hard to initially see through the bright colors and cartoony characters. But evidence of frustrated emotions can be seen in the squiggly dialogue of "Me So Hungry" or "Constant Struggle" and the uneasy faces of many of his figures. Thurman identifies this shift as paralleling what he identifies as a "darker time in [his] life." He clarifies by saying "if I'm having a bad day or I'm kind of in a slump, this rut ends up in my artwork and reflects upon me. It helps me cope with things. I basically take my little characters and put them through the emotions that I'm feeling at the time. I'll rip them up, cut them, and stretch them to help me get through what ever may be troubling me. I feel a little guilty afterwards, but they really do help me out." The internal struggle often found through the visual expressions of artists feels just a genuine, and perhaps more emphatic within Thurman's style and medium.

Since his recent graduation, much of his work has been two-dimensional, Thurman prefers the spatial potential of ceramics, in which he translates his color palette and cartoon stills into toothy, stacked faces or twisted jars, "something . . . that will make it stand out from other things in someone's cupboard." He says that he wants to make ceramics more fun and "give ceramics the credit that it deserves; it's a very tough, time-consuming process." Without easy access to SEMO's materials, Thurman's been forced to explore cheaper mediums in order to simply "keep busy," which he refers to as his main activity since graduation.

Thurman is already highly active in Cape's art community. His colorful, lively pop art has appeared at several art shows, including the recent one in Buckner's newly renovated third floor, and his painting "Check Please" can currently be seen at the juried exhibit Girardot at the Arts Council gallery on Main St. For the past month or so, several of his paintings have been displayed at the Sidewalk Sandwich Shop, which often houses work by local artists.

At some point, Thurman hopes to open his own local gallery "for past students as well as present and future ones so that they would still have a venue to showcase their work." He feels that the local art scene is improving, but that this will only continue with involvement and diversity. When I turn the conversation towards local music, Thurman says that he's "been diggin' it," and mentions working on a possible cover for the Otto Modest.

"It's important to support each other," he comments, "especially in a town like this," explaining that he means Cape's flow towards open-minded diversity and the potential conflict with its "conservative tendencies." He encourages young artists to try to show their work as much as possible. Thurman says like bands playing small shows, "artists have to put their work in little shacks just to get seen." He feels that young artists shouldn't be discouraged, stating "it's good to hear criticism; it helps out artists. And it looks good on your resume," he continues. Thurman believes that every artist, visual, musical, or even those who share his interest in amateur filmmaking, needs support from local creatives, so they "can grow along with them."

If you'd like to support James Thurman, you can check out his work in various local venues or online at james-thurman.com.