About the Artist

My name is James Dunbar, a local Portland area artist that has been part of on the Portland/Vancouver art scene for about four years now. I was born in Phoenix, Arizona and later moved to live on my uncle Buddy's goat farm in Independence, Oregon. After two years on the farm we moved to North Portland to stay with my grandma and grandpa. It was then that my mom married a great guy, the late James Vaughn, who I still think of as my dad today!

                  
I've always wanted to be an artist. Since the age of eight my step dad made me feel as if my early art was the best in the world! I remember as a very young kid seeing and hearing him tell everyone who came over to visit that my animal drawings were incredible. He hung them on all the walls of the house as if I were famous or something. He kept me motivated all the way up to the day of his untimely death when I was just 15. After that I kind of lost my desire to draw and paint. So, here I am 20 years later trying to stir up the wonderful gift that God has blessed me with.

After more than a 20 year absence from the art scene, I owe most of my new found success to some very important people in my life. The first person is my wonderful, beautiful lady Robyn—without her by my side, I might have given up on my dreams. Also the one and only Gary Lawrence who has taken me in as if I were family! Mr. Lawrence has kept me hungry and motivated to excel at a very high level for the first time since I was a very young boy. I would also like to take this time to pay a special tribute to my late mom Betty J. Taylor who did everything possible to raise my sisters and I the best way possible. God bless you, mom.

My art mentors have been mainly one artist and that is Norman Rockwell. As a kid I owned five of his books which I still have to this day. I loved looking at and reading all about the Saturday Evening Post magazine. The stories that Mr. Rockwell told with his works of art will always be with me for life.

The colors of the New York Artist Jacob Lawrence also inspired and influenced my art. If I were to state any modern day artist that inspires me, I would have to say that I just love the colors and textures of Amanda Dunbar's work.

Ok, bear with me, everyone. I've saved this artist for last because, like so many people, I couldn't believe how great the man of light has touched us all with his master pieces—the one and only Thomas Kinkade.

—James E. Dunbar