My Sculptural Journey
A kindled passion can live on and help direct our destiny. Fate and the flow of life can steer us in many directions that provide no clue or revelation as to what destination awaits us. But in life, often the greatest reward does not come from reaching a destination but instead comes from a journey, an unending journey that provides exciting and enriching experiences, interesting people that we meet along the way, unforeseen rewards, unanticipated excitement, and most important, surprising joy. Sculpting is the passion and unending journey of our speaker for October, James Fatata.
Jim is a native of North Carolina. He earned an undergraduate degree in 1967 and a master’s degree in 1969 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed additional postgraduate work in 1989 at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina.
He prefers to work in the medium of bisque fired or glazed stoneware clay to create unique representational, one of a kind, figurative sculptures in the classical, realism style. Bisque-fired sculptures are painstakingly hand worked to achieve a result that resembles a marble-like, flesh color or a faux bronze finish. Jim artistically interprets and explores the subtle nuances of sculptural forms. His works accurately portray and celebrate the human form while exploring the most profound aspects of the human experience, which are expressed poetically with beauty and grace. Ordinary emotions, ideas, and passions of our shared humanity, along with evocative ideas and themes are expressed in his work.
In addition to occasionally teaching sculpture classes at the Craft Center at North Carolina State University, he also conducts occasional figurative or portrait classes at Litmus Gallery & Studios in downtown Raleigh that offer adults, beginners, and experienced artists, a unique opportunity to explore their artistic abilities and expand their art experiences through sculpting with clay. He provides instruction that emphasizes basic sculpting techniques and provides assistance and guidance in accurately seeing, and realistically interpreting, human anatomy. Participants create sculptures that are correct in form and proportion.
Fatata works have been juried into numerous art shows and exhibitions. You can see additional examples of his work by visiting Litmus Gallery & Studios at 312 W. Cabarrus St., Raleigh, NC 27605 and by viewing his work on the web at www.litmusgallery.com. You can contact Jim Fatata at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for additional information or to discuss commissioning a sculpture of yourself or anything else.
