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I was born in Forestport, New York, a small town nestled in the foothills of the Adirondacks. My parents were both artists and teachers and believed in children, art, education and the Catholic Church, all of these holding equal status. I have three siblings all of whom have been either artists or teachers. One of these is my twin sister... yes... God help us... there are two of us. In the summer it was not uncommon that the whole family would spend the day doing landscapes in watercolor only to come home to a meal of strawberry shortcake and as, darkness crept over the Black River valley Mom would be reading to us from such books as the Bible or Tom Sawyer. I thought everyone lived like this but was soon to find out it was a unique environment which I still look back at with love, affection and gratitude.
I loved the outdoors and at first disliked school. Tapping trees, fishing, trapping muskrats, art, and serving on the altar at church were important to me.
It was known that "Jim" always hit the door of the school running... "on the way out". Therefore my parents thought it was (for obvious reasons) a good idea for me to spend my senior year of high school at The Manlius Military school. They were right.
This school gave me
the desire to learn and
I did. The next fall I
entered The State
University of New York at New Paltz where I received a Bachelors and Masters degree
in Art Education and was fortunate there to study with Ilya Bolotowsky, Gabriel Laderman,
Robert Schuler, Ben Bishop, George Wardlaw and
Kurt Matzdorf. For the next thirty seven years I taught art in the public school, thirty four of these at the high school level at Webutuck Central School in Millerton, New York. I have four children all of whom have all followed in the family tradition as teachers and lovers of the arts.
I have been painting for fifty-five years since I was nine and have not stopped. The love of nature, flowers, landscapes and religion that was such an important part of my nurturing years has carried itself over into my art work. There seems to be no end to the subject matter.
Below is a list of shows, galleries and museums where I have shown my work.
2008 National Show Cape Cod Art Assoc, Barnstable, MA, Honorable Mention.
2008 National Show Cooperstown Art Association, Cooperstown, NY.
2008 Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts 97TH Annual Juried Show, Mystic, CT.
2007 National Show Cape Cod Art Association, Barnstable, MA.
2007 National Show Cooperstown Art Association, Cooperstown, NY.
2003 forty two paintings on exhibit at Bona Ars Solum Gallery in Buffalo, NY.
1985 to present several local art shows and honors.
1973 to 1985 several summer exhibits, Sharon Arts Association, CT.
1970 a painting was chosen to exhibit at the Everson Art Museum in Syracuse, NY.
1966 won first place in painting at the Waterbury Arts Festival, CT.
Travel and painting trips to: France, Italy, Scotland, Wales, England, Canada, Nova Scotia and most of the United States.
JAMES B. TAPLEY
