Biography

James Hajicek is a native of Indiana who has lived and worked in Chicago for over 30 years. He studied painting, drawing, and sculpture at School of the Art Institute of Chicago; Columbia College Chicago; the American Academy of Art; and the School of Representation Art in Chicago, where he completed the four-year French Academic atelier program. James has exhibited in galleries around the midwest and along the eastern seaboard, and his work is in many private collections. He’s participated in regional plein air painting competitions across the country, most notably Plein Air Easton in Easton, Maryland, and Los Gatos Plein Air in California. Recent projects include children’s book illlustrations, the artists’ book Quick Sketch, and creation of the projected artwork in the multi-media performance Rose of Damascus at the Vittum Theater in Chicago. Jim teaches classes in Portrait and Figure Drawing;  “Anatomy for Artists” ; and Figure Sculpture at the Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago.

Artist’s Statement

I love to create things with my hands. The act of creating is tactile, entrancing, and hypnotic. I use many different materials to create, striving to express the different characters I encounter, or emotions that we all experience in everyday life. I love to see when one of my favorite sculptures provokes a strong reaction, and to follow those emotions to find new inspiration. 

For me, the art-making process seems to happen in a timeless space. When I’m working, the hours spent drawing, painting, and sculpting pass in the blink of an eye. It’s as if I step into a “free zone,” an unaccounted-for part of my life, save for the art that is the end result. Many people experience this phenomenon while doing things they love—running, swimming, singing, hiking, dancing, or sailing. I access it through making art.

When I show my work, the most fulfilling thing is to watch as it brings forth reactions and feelings: a brief moment of nostalgia, an emotional memory, a sense of resignation and acceptance. Even an expression of distaste or rejection can be satisfying, because I know I touched something inside.

Representation
Spectra Art Studio
spectraartstudio@gmail.com