This month we are featuring Jim Presant for the Capitol Hill Art League’s Mind of the Artist blog. Read Jim’s story and check out his artwork below.

In 2018 I suggested two of a friend’s abstract paintings might look better upside down, she happily agreed, sensed hidden talent, and handed me a canvas and a brush. We were both pleasantly surprised at the quality of the acrylic abstract that quickly emerged!  She didn’t want me to take it home!

As a psychotherapist, I’m always alert for a client’s hidden gifts, so it was fitting that someone should do so for me!

People noted my early paintings would brighten and energize a space in an uplifting way , so I adopted that as my style: playful, uplifting, light-hearted, with bold strokes and colors. Using huge amounts of white paint to brighten things up. 

Often I paint boldly and quickly, which has generated a lot of paintings, and in widely varied styles. Because they’re so varied, I’m eager to show a large number of them as a group! 

The first floor of my Petworth row house ( right at Petworth Metro! ) is a kind of gallery space, including another artist’s abstracts, a lot of sculptures, and some fun Art Deco posters.  I’d be happy to host events here, but Petworth is definitely not in Capitol Hill.