About James Darum's Art
A Shot of Color and a Smile

James Darum boldly transforms the western dreams of our collective subconscious into larger-than-life cowboys, trail bosses and lawmen.  Bright, vivid and crackling with energy, his Western characters absolutely command the field of attention on which they appear

"Happy Hour"

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Presented in minimalist settings, often before empty monochrome backdrops, these impudent icons jolt us in the way superheroes do.  We recognize them immediately without reference to time, place or geography.  Framed by our own imagination they draw breath through the alchemy of personal projection and the painter's powerful imagery.

Each Darum painting is gallery-wrapped -- stretched around an internal frame -- allowing canvas and surroundings to merge seamlessly.  The overall impact is three-dimensional.   These drovers, sheriffs and cowpokes could step right off he wall.

James Darum's mischievous world surprises us moment by moment.  A master of ambiguous visual perspective, Darum populates his compositions with outsized and out-of-scale elements, searing colors, and oddly out-of-place patterns and objects.  And always outlandish mustaches.  We know these cowboys, yet the longer we look, the more they startle us.  Leaving preconceived notions far behind, we smile.

About the Artist

James Darum has spent more than half a century in Arizona.  Born in Evansville, Indiana, he moved here with his family as a teenager.  After studying commercial art at Northern Arizona University he began his career as an illustrator. 

Darum's mature sensibility as an artist is reflected in his rare ability to present exaggerated, whimsical characters without devolving into caricature.  The outrageous style and sass of his cowboys never undermine the obvious esteem in which he holds them.  His unerring capacity to reflect what we read into mythic figures renders his creations astute character studies -- about us.

James Darum's work has found homes around the world from bar rooms to board rooms.  His paintings make their own unique statements in a language that is universally understood. Clean, crisp and uncluttered they fit easily into almost any decorative scheme.
 

"Dust Busters"

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About James Darum Giclees
and Original Art

James Darum  paints original compositions in acrylic on canvas.  His works are available in various sizes as individually enhanced giclees. 

The giclee (French for "spray" or "spurt") process brings the full potential of digital scanning and printing technology to the world of fine art.  The giclee printer, designed and built solely for fine art printing, achieves a previously unheard of degree of resolution and clarity.  At one-and-a-half million tiny dots of pigment per second, it far outstrips even the best lithographs and serigraphs.

James Darum giclees are available in various sizes and prices, from 16" x 20" for $350 up to 48" x 60" for $2150.  Whatever your decorating needs and space or budgetary requirements, a Darum painting can add color and enjoyment to your immediate surroundings.

About Gallery Wrap and Framing

Your James Darum painting comes gallery-wrapped, that is, stretched over an internal frame.  The canvas conceals from view the frame that supports it.

Lightweight and easy-to-hang, gallery wrap construction turns a flat canvas into a three dimensional piece, bringing the image 2-1/2 inches closer than the plane of the wall behind it.

James Darum takes advantage of gallery wrap's compositional possibilities by painting the "edges" of many pieces. Sleeves, hats and elbows may wrap right around the frame, adding to the illusion that his painted characters have full dimensional mass and form.

In choosing art for home, work or play, gallery wrap affords a unique decorating advantage.  A gallery-wrapped canvas interacts freely with the wall without the interruption of a surrounding frame.  In a Darum painting the empty background space merges with the wall around it and vice-versa.  James Darum's distinctive compositions thus blend effortlessly into any environment.
 

"Chaps"

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