James Napoleon lives and paints in Kent, Connecticut, and on Long Island's North Fork. Mr Napoleon was born in New York City, studied painting at School of Visual Arts, and was graduated from the State University of New York - Empire State College, with a Bachelor of Science degree in interdisciplinary studies.
Mr Napoleon's works are in private and corporate art collections, and have been shown in solo and group exhibitions, including the Parrish Art Museum (Southampton, NY) 30th Juried Exhibition, and reviewed in the New York Times, Stamford Advocate, and ARTIS Magazine.
Mr Napoleon is a member of the Westport Arts Center. His "Self-Portrait, after Bronzino" was awarded the Kent Art Association Fall 2004 Show Award of Excellence. His "Rampart of Liberty" design was qualified as an Entry in the Flight 93 National Memorial Design Competition.
Mr Napoleon's painting Off Montauk was one of 49 selected by Juror Jacquelyn Serwer, Chief Curator of the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington DC, for inclusion in "Close To Home", a national juried exhibition staged at Creative Arts Workshop in New Haven, Connecticut. Mr Napoleon was Galerie Pelar (Greenport, NY) Artist in Residence for July 2005, and his paintings were shown in a one-artist exhibition at Poquatuck Hall in Orient.
A major Exhibition, with artists Sara French and Denise Minnerly, was held at 22 Haviland Street Gallery in Norwalk, Connecticut, Winter 2005/2006. James focused his work on Long Island's East End during 2007, and showed at Boltax Gallery's prestigious Juried Small Works Event on Shelter Island. A One-Artist Exhibition at Atelier Gallery, Greenport NY, was held January/February 2008.
Greenport studioStatement
Art heightens the sense of seeing.
My works are about artistic license as artistic imperative; I tune to what the mechanics of human eyesight do not see in the crossovers between the natural and manmade structures through which we move.
I tune for the thoughts of persons, saints, and angels. I embrace the point of view of the horizon, the sky, living things not human. I strive after geometries, balance in asymmetry, and peace in randomness.
I press beyond what is seen.