The Art & Poetry of
Dr. James Washington
Seeker of Truth
Visionary artist James Winston Washington, Jr. is one of the most celebrated sculptors from the Northwest. He received much acclaim for his sculptures during his long life, and now his early paintings are being rediscovered after his death. Washington’s close friends remember him as an orator, an educator, a poet, and an artist who tried to make visible the connection between spirituality and creativity.
James W. Washington, Jr. migrated to Bremerton, Washington in 1944. Although the state of Washington now claims him, the Mississippi-born artist was actually part of a larger migration of southern blacks seeking war industry work on the West Coast. Once here he set roots in the state working in a variety of government jobs while continuing his artistic pursuits in the evenings and on weekends.
Washington’s motivation and confidence is evident in his visit to the Little Gallery in Seattle in 1945 where he met the gallery owner and asked for a show. Impressed with the small painting he brought with him, the owner agreed to show his work and introduced Washington to one of Seattle’s artistic luminaries - Mark Tobey. The older artist, also spiritual in orientation, forged a life-long bond with Washington. Through Tobey, Washington was befriended by many other artists. Mark Tobey’s encouragement and Washington’s self-confidence led to a successful life in art.
Although he had no formal training in art, Washington appears to have been practicing his craft for a life time. In a 1952 Seattle Times article Washington recalls being in grade school in the south and seeing another boy draw a cowboy. Washington remembers he spent months trying to draw the same picture and from then on his passion was art. For most of his life Washington worked a nine-to-five job to support himself and his wife Janie. His free time was spent doing art.
“In my work with stone it is as if nature speaks and I listen. Then I speak. And with the help of my hands, we speak together.”
As a young man he worked primarily with pastels and watercolors. In the early 1950s, after a trip to Mexico he began sculpting. His first piece was carved in 1956 from a volcanic rock he brought back from Mexico. He titled the piece “Young Boy from Athens.
Once he taught himself to sculpt he felt this was the medium he was meant to pursue. Washington would later say that the spiritual force emanating from art seemed to be greater within stone than within painting.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Sculpture installed at the Rotunda of Achievement Philadelphia PA Photograph by Josef Scaylea 1969
The Fountain of Triumph Restored & relocated at 24th & Union, Seattle
“Art is not born of the intellect.
It is born of intuition.
It relies on this insight
for interpretation”
— Dr. James Washington
Finding Yourself
Finding yourself in this life is your greatest task to perform, until you begin to start the search, you are left alone. When you decide to start, be it now or then, close your eyes to the outside world and begin your search within.
Some folks search for themselves among their relatives and friends, but each time they miss themselves and have to start all over again.
Try reflecting on this, again, again, and again: You will never know yourself until you search within!
Written by James W. Washington, Jr. and Dedicated to Janie Rogella Washington, my wife, with love!
Published 1993 in Treasured Poems of America