Medium of Choice: Oil
“Trekell acquired a sort of legendary status in my mind during my first few years as a painter. I would hear about them on podcasts and see my favourite artists using them on instagram. But I was living in rural New Zealand at the time, so they always felt just out of reach. After moving to Spain, they seemed a little less out of reach, so I convinced a friend to send me some Golden Taklons, and I loved them.
Very few brushes have been able to withstand my signature blend of painterly neglect and abuse. But Trekell brushes deliver."
James Ormiston grew up on an isolated sheep farm in rural New Zealand. Being indoors was generally discouraged, so days were usually spent outside working the land, with his mind free to wander and create stories to pass the time. In the evenings, he would commit those stories to paper in the form of comics and illustrations.
In his late teens, his interest in drawing and storytelling evolved into a passion for animation, which led him to move to the South Island of New Zealand to attend the Dunedin School of Art, where he studied animation and electronic arts. While his love for the medium was strong, he quit when he realized that filmmaking was “prohibitively collaborative for an introverted weirdo”, choosing instead to focus on the more solitary pursuit of illustration.
His illustration work ultimately earned him a spot in a Melbourne Art Residency Program in 2017. The residency allowed James to transition from illustration to Fine Art, studying under a variety of contemporary realist painters and honing his skills.
In 2019, James moved to Barcelona, where he remains today, nestled in the Gothic Quarter’s labyrinth of narrow, winding streets. The city’s rich history, reverence for the arts, and vibrant creative community have marked a creatively prosperous period for him, during which he has had the good fortune to work with galleries such as Arcadia Contemporary and Nanny Goat Gallery. He is currently preparing his first solo show with Arte Vistas Gallery.
