We were lucky to catch up with James Picard recently and have shared our conversation below.
James, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
I’ve always been creative. I started drawing, my mother said, as soon as I could hold a pencil. I did not grow up in a creative household, as a matter of fact, creativity was frowned upon. My father was a violent alcoholic, and drawing and painting, became my escape from my every day life. I always loved music and art, and followed both with a passion. In my first year of Art College, my greatest supporter, my older sister, was murdered at the age of 21 and that changed the direction of my life completely. At 19 years old I realized the true meaning of the fragility of life, and how fleeting time really is. I knew after this huge traumatic event I would become a professional artist, and as the saying goes … “Damn the Torpedoes.”
James, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
After I attended art colleges and universities in Toronto Ontario and mentoring with the renowned artist Harold Town, my desire to learn more lead me to New York City, where I apprenticed with a number of incredible artists and other mentors as well. I paint and draw in many various mediums and have done countless commissions, that not only include paintings and portraits, but illustration of books, album and cd covers and posters. I love the challenge of creating and using my skills to take a clients vision and bring it to fruition. In 2012 I ventured into the medium of filmmaking and created a multi-award winning documentary film entitled “The Dark and the Wounded” which toured North American Film Festivals in 2017-2018, winning a multitude of awards and ended up as a sleeper hit at the 71st Cannes Film Festival in France. This has led to doing a number of video and short film commissions as both director and cinematographer which has been extremely exciting as well.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
I would say that the mission driving my creative journey is all about following your creative path no matter what. I was always told when I was starting my career that I needed a back up plan, that I would be a starving artist and I should possibly think of another career. I realized as my career moved forward that the people giving me this advice we’re not in the creative fields at all. They actually had no idea what it was like to follow a creative path like I was doing and yet they were so forthcoming in giving me advice that they really knew nothing about. Most had given up on their dreams long ago and followed societies step by step program to live a supposed happy mediocre life by making money. I never bought into this way of thinking, as even when I was at my most poorest and darkest times, I’ve always been happy creating no matter what my situation around me was. The creative journey is not an easy one but it’s definitely, for me, the most rewarding journey my life could’ve taken.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
I think the one thing that people have trouble grasping about being a creative soul, is all the time you spend isolated and creating. You’re not making any money, you’re not watching TV or out and about, you are just isolating yourself and following a desire to create something from a thought, or a feeling, and that time that you spend is so ultimately rewarding. Most people see the end result of a painting, a book, or a song, but they don’t understand the time and anguish and energy that gets put into that end result. Ernest Hemingway said writing is easy you just sit in
front of the typewriter and bleed. Very true words. If you hand someone a piece of paper and a pencil, and you say create something and make a living, it sounds absolutely insane, and it kind of is quite insane if you think about it. Yet there is some thing about creativity we are drawn to as human beings. Michelangelo said creating made him closer to God. I feel the universe is all about creation and when you are creating and going through that process, you do tap into something on a much higher plane. True creativity is a link to the heavens in my humble opinion. It’s what keeps us creatives going. It brings us to another dimension of reality and it truly is a beautiful place to be.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jamespicard.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/james.picard.56863/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/james.picard.5686?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Other: www.thedarkandthewoundedofficial.com IMDB – James Picard