James Owens (b. 1995) is a British painter based in south-east London. He received his Foundation Diploma in Art and Design at London College of Communication (2015), his BA in Illustration and Visual Media at London College of Communication (2016), and his BA in Illustration at Camberwell College of Arts (2018).
His work gathers past, present and imagined scenes to form new narratives, which operate in moments of liminality. In these works, plants creep, dance and communicate in hushed tones. They grow in unlikely settings, pushing up through cracks and stretching towards the sun. This world captures nature in its full capacity - toying in flux between splendid growth and brutal death. As a small flower tenderly blossoms, another wilts. A curling tendril soon becomes a parasite. The paintings tread gently upon this balance between strength and weakness, hope and doom. Figures may come together with closeness, but there is a sense that they are protecting each other from something. Similarly, wildflowers appear in glorious full bloom - or perhaps they are fighting against one another for survival.
Solo exhibitions include ‘Dreaming of UFOs’ at Lychee One Gallery in London (2022) ‘Quiet Fire’ at Arusha Gallery in London (2021). Selected group exhibitions include: ‘Art Brussels’ at Newchild Gallery in Brussels (2024); ‘Out of Earth’ at The Approach in London (2024); ‘Disembodied’ at Nicodim Gallery in Los Angeles (2024); ‘Once, Then, Gone’ at Newchild in Antwerp (2023) ‘Felt cute, might delete later’ at Arusha Gallery in London (2023); Hawthorn and the Feast of Julian at Arusha Gallery in New York (2023); ‘A New Sensation’ at Galerie Marguo in Paris (2023); ‘The Moth and the Thunderclap’ at Stuart Shave Modern Art in London (2023).