Gordon C. James

Gordon C. James is the award-winning illustrator of CROWN: AN ODE TO THE FRESH CUT, written by Derrick Barnes, for which Gordon received the Caldecott Honor, Coretta Scott King Honor and Ezra Jack Keats Honor awards, among others. Some of his other works include illustrations of Patricia McKissack’s SCRAPS OF TIME series.

Born in Washington DC and raised in Fort Washington, Maryland, Gordon has been pursuing an art career ever since attending high school at Suitland Center for the Visual and Performing Arts in Forestville, Maryland. From there he went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in illustration from the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

After a national search in 1997, Gordon was one of only two full-time illustrators hired to work for Hallmark Cards Inc. As an award-winning fine artist, Gordon works to achieve the highest level of craftsmanship and beauty. These qualities have led to his paintings being featured in International Artist Magazine and his work being part of the Paul R. Jones Collection at the University of Alabama. He brings these same sensibilities to the table when creating his illustrative work. Gordon’s illustrations are soulful, emotive and technically sound. He works hard so that we know how the characters look and, more importantly, exactly how they feel. As a testament to these qualities, his illustrations were part of an exhibition at the Asheville Art Museum in Asheville, North Carolina. Among the many awards Gordon has received for his work is a Society of Illustrators Gold Medal.

Gordon C. James lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with his wife Ingrid and their two children Astrid and Gabriel. He is proud to create beautiful works of art that help to tell stories and bring books to life.

AWARDS

2018 Caldecott Honor

2018 Coretta Scott King Honor, Illustrator

2018 Ezra Jack Keats Honor, Illustrator

2018 NCTE Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children: Recommended Book

Society of Illustrators Gold Medal

Best Picture Book for Black Boys Honorable Mention, Bookstagram Best of 2017 Awards

Artist in Residence, McColl Center for the Arts, Fall 2003

Best Portfolio Award, Portrait Society of America, “Art of the Portrait” National Portrait Artists’ Conference 2003

Finalist, International Artist Magazine, Challenge No.42, People and Figures, December/January 2008

2nd Annual Sonia Lynn Sadler Award

Selected illustrations featured in “American Illustration 37”

ASSEMBLY PRESENTATIONS

The ART of Stories (ideal for grades PK-5th)

In this presentation connected to Gordon C. James’ award-winning CROWN: AN ODE TO THE FRESH CUT picture book, students are walked through the process Gordon used to create the illustrations in the book.

Path to Illustration (ideal for grades 5th-12th)

In this presentation for school-aged children and teens, Gordon C. James explains how he went from taking art classes in school to becoming an award-winning illustrator. Sharing his challenges and successes, he takes audiences on a journey that inspires them to work hard, persevere and dream big!

YOU Are The Illustrator (ideal for all ages, PK-12th)

In this presentation, Gordon C. James leads students through a fun activity illustrating lines from an imaginary book. The line might say, “The monster invited me to his house for dinner.” Gordon discusses all the different ways to think about the prompt then guides students in creating an illustration for the line they choose.

CLASSROOM WORKSHOPS

Gordon C. James also can present art workshops for a class-sized group tailored to meet the needs of your students. He can provide instruction using different mediums and techniques.

Read news from Gordon C. James

[testimonials ids=”3622″]

[testimonials ids=”4610″]