James Cousens III's Projects

BFA Alumni

Major: Printmaking

Graduation Year: 2021

Artist Statement:

This past year, music has made its way to the forefront of my work. While it has always played a part in my studio process by informing my color choices and palettes, I have started to focus on the emotional effect of experiencing music and the people who make it, specifically the 60’s jam band the Grateful Dead. I aim to pay reverence to the band themselves, as well as the artists and poster designers that created the visual language of expressive and psychedelic art.

Biography:

James Cousens is a printmaker currently living in Portland, ME after graduating in 2021 from Maine College of Art with a BFA in Printmaking. He uses his prints as a way to amplify the things he is interested in. His subject matter often revolves around music and emotion through the use of the elements of color and shape. His pallets are inspired by music and its emotional tone as well. Working in a style that lends itself well to reductive relief and screen printing, he translates three dimensional forms into two dimensional blocks of color. These colors make up a range of values which then give the illusion of space in his prints. Cousens comes from a digital background, but has found love for printmaking because of the result of the process- the ability to put his hand into his work while still maintaining control.