.

A self-taught painter and illustrator, Laura James has been working as an artist for almost thirty years. Her African and Caribbean-American heritage, and a love of stories, design, and color, are all elements that have always been present in her work. Painting in two styles she refers to as “sacred” and “secular,” James separates and combines the sacrosanct and the ordinary.

James’ work can be seen in hundreds of publications from textbooks to film worldwide. In 2014 James founded the BX200: Bronx Visual Artists Directory, a curated website for some of the Bronx’s best visual artists, which also presents art exhibitions and professional development workshops around New York City. James is invested in the Bronx and her community, and serves on her local Community Board.

.

Charles Hearn is an artist, web designer, and illustrator. His art training began in high school, with summer programs at California College of Arts and Crafts and Otis College of Art & Design, and continued in UC Berkeley. Charles studied at L’Accademia Di Belle Arti and L’Universita di Bologna in Bologna, Italy. Later, he lived in Los Angeles, painting and participating in group art shows, and attended the School of Visual Arts for an MFA.

His community based art work is deeply embedded in the history and non-fictional narratives of prominent historic figures in the African Diaspora. Charles works closely with the Harlem Historical Society, and Damatrix Studios producing public art including plaques, posters, paintings, and print materials, for cultural initiatives and outreach. His portraits of Frederick Douglass, Ida B. Wells, and others use contemporary and traditional media and carry strong cultural references.

Charles has participated in group art shows in Brooklyn and the Lower East Side recently. His work is in the collection of the James Brown family, Brooklyn Borough Hall, Medgar Evers College, and in private collections.  

.