We recently connected with James Finnegan and have shared our conversation below.
James, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I think purpose found me. It started in 2nd grade. I did a colored chalk drawing of a nativity scene on the blackboard that was praised and left in tack way after Christmas. Grade school was difficult for me as I was always getting caught making drawings of cars or mad magazine characters. In 4th or 5th grade I had a teacher who thought it ok that I spend time drawing. Around the same time I remember my mother was part a card club. When the women came to our house I would show off by making a copy of an image from the news paper….. getting everyone’s praises in the process. When I went to the library I would go to Q section of oversized books looking at images. When I got to high school it would be the first time I had an art class and that was really exciting to be Introduced to materials, processes and history. It was what I did best. My 12th grade English lit teacher suggested I go to the local trade school but I decided to go to the University of Wisconsin because my friends were going there. Freshman year four studio classes, art history, a general feeling there was a great deal to discover and that killer mandatory Chaucer class told me I was in the right place. Graduate school solidified my idea of what a visual artist is. The purpose of making work was to talk about those things that were important to me with the hope they would be equally important to others.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am doing large scale, colored pencil drawings. I like pencils because of their intense color and they force me to really consider how they will be used…. they are not erasable. I ve realized I love to draw and that everything is a source to be drawn. That realization has combined with my belief that life is made up of random experiences. Events that we try to make sense of. The drawings I m doing now are images real and made up.and are placed on the page randomly.. At some point I try to give that randomness reason or order. The viewer try’s to give the drawing reason in the same way as I do In the making of it. For me this is a metaphor for daily. life, science, religion, our existence
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
being conscious, working at understanding who you are
be a good friend to yourself
doing something that you love
work hard at it
Know that most likely things won’t be like you imagined, good and bad
Be open
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
For a long time I have had the thought that a great deal of our life is not controllable,….difference experiences everyday . At best, we can affect things but not control them. The book that has affected me and my drawings is Seven Brief lessons on Modern Physics by Carlo Rovelli, a Philosopher /Physicist
I have read this book many times and I understand a bit more each time.
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One message is-The physical world is ever changing and Time is only right now
Contact Info:
- Website: jamespatrickfinnegan.com
- Instagram: @wouldacre
- Facebook: James Patrick Finnegan
Image Credits
the images are all my photography
