Life is too important to be taken seriously.
Oscar Wilde
I come from the small town of Burlington, Colorado, where I spent my childhood. Growing up on a farm 20 miles outside of town made me feel like I was in my little world, with my younger brother, a few cousins, and all sorts of cows, cats, and dogs as my companions. The occasional appearance of coyotes, prairie dogs, and rattlesnakes added some excitement to our rural life.
Growing up, I attended a Christian church that wasn’t affiliated with any specific denomination. When I was six years old, I decided to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. This decision has had a huge impact on my life and has motivated me to always try to live according to God’s plan.
I always knew I wanted to be an artist. Once I started putting pencil (or crayon) to paper, I was hooked and that’s all I wanted to do. I would be the kid off in the corner with a sketchbook in my little world.
When I was in high school, I was trying to figure out how to be an artist professionally. Then Jurassic Park came out in theaters. It blew my mind that artists could be animating realistic characters for movies. I then focused my attention on computer animation.
I also started to fall away from my faith. I was listening to my friends instead of God and started chasing girls, drinking, smoking, and by the time I graduated, had been starting to smoke marijuana. I still knew God was real and had died for our sins, I just didn’t understand the relationship I needed to have with Him and how I need to make Him the lord of my life.
I attended college at the Art Institute of Colorado with a major in Media Arts and Animation. I really enjoyed learning all about all types of art and all the ways I could animate. I, unfortunately, graduated about 6 months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. With the economic downturn this caused, all the jobs and most of the animation companies in the central part of the United States had dried up. I was informed that if I was going to get a job in the industry, I had to move to either Los Angeles or New York and then get in the line for available positions. I decided not to do that and see if the industry returned to Colorado.
During my time in college, I gave up on smoking marijuana but was still doing all the rest. I still was no closer to God or my understanding of what being a Christian actually is. I tried to attend some churches but had to fumble my way through the dark before I could learn who I truly am.
After a few years, I decided to go back to college. This time I went for Computer Aided Drafting (CAD). I wanted to do something that could incorporate an element of art but is a very widely available career. This one worked and I got into the industry before I even graduated.
This has been my career for the last eighteen-plus years. I have worked for several different companies but have enjoyed being able to model and coordinate drafted elements on the computer. And, as a bonus, I was able to use a lot of the skills I learned for animation in the drafting environment.
Shortly after starting my career in drafting, I met my wife, Liz. We dated for only around 9 months before I proposed. In April of 2009, we were wed. God has been so good to me even though I was still walking in darkness. Liz and I were both far from knowing God for several years of our marriage. After a few years, God blessed us with a son. He has been our little miracle baby because we were told we most likely wouldn’t be able to have kids. When our son was around 3 years old, God led us to a church in Castle Rock Colorado. With the help of the people there, God led me and Liz back to him. This is when God showed me that He was not only my savior but that he also had to be the Lord of my life.
All during this time, I have been painting and drawing. About 12 years ago, I found a new art medium called Pyrography. After trying it out for the first time, I fell in love with this style of art. I love the ability to illustrate like using pen and ink but burning into the wood and then painting on it many different types. I think the finished product looks amazing. As I’m sure you noticed, this is my favorite type of art to do. In 2019, God started convicting me to give my artistic talent and desires to him. Since then, I have switched my focus to work on Christian-related art and art that shows the beauty of his creations.
In 2022, God called us to move to southern Oregon. We love it here and are very grateful for God has placed us. We have an amazing community around us in the town we live in and in the church we were guided to. We are currently trying to live our lives for God every day and I create art projects whenever I get the chance.
I am an open book and there is a LOT of stuff I didn’t include in this. If you are interested in learning more, just reach out. AaronJamesDesigns@Outlook.com