Photographer, writer; human toward art, truth, and the good.
Native to Earth, beautiful, precious beyond measure, the only habitable planet for quite some distance (or at all), James McMurtrie is a regular human person.
He dreams. He worries about the future of our home. There was a time when his favourite colour was yellow, but, for reasons at once simple and inexplicable, the colour red, like that of a rose, now has his heart.
See, normal human stuff.
Descendant from earlier, less complex iterations of life, James finds pleasure and meaning in sharing what forms of the beautiful his fortunate existence —what his skilled, creative perspective does afford.
Inextricably held in a state of curious naïveté, camera ever at the ready (truly, he goes nowhere without one), earnest existentialist, polite Spinozan, journalist at heart, James is trying to eat less bread, despite how terribly tasty, how deceptively filling it feels.
Empathy and imagination (with their products, kindness, connection), and the first principles grounding these are core to his intentional life, a being-toward the kind of man he’d like to see in the world, the human he’d like to become, if he could so choose —and I guess he’s choosing.
Choosing, too, to oft wear bold colours, floral patterns, to sigh, unstifled (else a shutter, released), whenever he sees a garden of flowers in light, a cute human moment, some form of the beautiful unfolding before him.
Preferences, proclivities notwithstanding, though he be civilized, agreeable, prone to non-linear thought and endless creative digressions, the fact remains that he’s essentially an animal wearing pants. Something we’d typically have a good laugh about. Possibly, something worth remembering.
Part-time Philosophy and Political Science student at the University of Toronto (taking classes, here and there —a no-rush, perpetual affair of personal development), James first interned at Canada’s #1 direct marketing agency as a copywriter, before, from 2007 to 2014, working in and closely with the newsroom of an award-winning national newspaper, in production, advertising, and editorial capacities.
Published writer, professional photographer specializing in natural light portraiture, James likes bananas, but he wonders if eating a whole banana in one sitting is a little indulgent.
At home, vintage science fiction, eastern European romance novels, non-fiction works on physics, philosophy, life, fashion and civilization compete for his limited shelf space and attention. Squeezed somewhere between, along with various esoteric, ironic works, stands at least one comprehensive, photo-filled tome on cats (in case the internet goes down for any length of time).
James sometimes feels that he’s about to sneeze, but, for whatever reason, he just doesn’t, or can’t. The situation is often made worse by the lingering presence of this evidently false feeling, the itchy nose, those watery eyes, that sense of something left incomplete. James finds this to be most unsatisfying.
Not to stay on this subject, forever, but he would prefer it if all feelings with respect to the onset of a sneeze were accompanied, each, by a thorough, fully sneezed-out sneeze. The nearer to a one-to-one ratio, the better.
Aside from creating art, literature and discourse in support of a curious, responsible, space-fairing civilization the likes of which would make proud, his heroes, the late Gene Roddenberry, Carl Sagan —the ends to which James’ day to day efforts are aimed is to make lots of really great art; to, with the good kind of light, earnest thought, create beautiful, moving, useful works and stories; to please his clients, to offer his style, his voice, a frame of mind unique and appropriate to his current and desired disposition.
Perhaps, in a previous life, as in this one, James didn’t much enjoy speaking of himself in the third person —all the less, to, without a hint of shame, speak so glowingly of his own strengths.
Nevertheless, he writes well, he takes beautiful photos, he possesses useful skills and human depth; he knows what he’s doing, what he wants, and he cannot help but put himself into his work, so completely, as he does.
No longer afraid of sleeping with the lights off, James is approximately 60% water, and currently lives, works, relishes life, art, beauty in the city of Toronto.
book a shoot
let’s make some art
ethics in art
for good art, respect is essential