Posts Tagged ‘jamie lester’

 Jamie Lester is a well known West Virginia based artist. He attended West Virginia University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts, with focus on ceramic and sculpture.  After college he went through a weeklong intensive training in bas-relief sculpture from sculptor Ken Bradford. Sculptures Bill Hopen of Sutton West Virginia, and Alan Cottrill from Zanesville Ohio served as his mentors throughout the last ten years. He is most well known in West Virginia for sculpting the Jerry West statue. The process of creating the sculpture of the basketball star required intensive planning, energy, creativity and hard work. The dynamic nature of the figure in motion along with the fascinating nature of the subject, gave him an unparalleled opportunity to make a very interesting sculpture. The Jerry West statue is a great example of Jamie’s ability to complete extreme pieces of art from start to finish.  He also has sculpted inductees to the Southern Gospel Hall of Fame and the entire World Golf Hall of Fame.

 Early Life
Jamie Lester was born at Raleigh General Hospital in Beckley and his residence at the time of birth was Oceana West Virginia. As a child he drew constantly, starting as young as the age of two years old. He had a positive environment growing up, with both his parents being completely supportive of his aspirations to become a professional artist. He is an avid musician and can play two instruments and also sings.

Inspiration/Admiration
Jamie’s work is inspired by the human spirit. When he creates a sculpture it is inspired by the beauty in the natural world. His favorite piece of work done by someone else is Giancomo Bernini’s David. He looks to his contemporaries in the figurative sculpture world for inspiration as well. Continuing his progress in his work, and to get better with every piece of work that he does  is what keeps inspiring him.

Current Works and Goals
The primary goal is to do more full round large scale bronze sculptures. Something that Jamie currently is working on is a fictional novel. He would like to enhance his knowledge of the human anatomy, musculature, and bone structure. Jamie loves to spend time with his family. He has a wife named Michelle and three kids. He also enjoys going to basketball games and working around the house. In being such a well-known artist you may be surprised to know that Jamie has a very basic studio, his garage. He is able to complete most of his sculptures there unless they are very large, in which case he must rent a special warehouse Jamie currently is working on many different projects. “I just finished a ¼ life scale Arabian Stallion and Trainer for a client here in West Virginia. I am sculpting a 44-inch wide relief sculpture of the Fokker F7, commemorating the first passenger flight from Key West, Florida to Havana, Cuba in 1928. I sculpt a number of relief portraits ever week, and still draw constantly” said Jamie. Jamie hopes that his art is able to stand on it’s own, without text and still be fully appreciated.