An established portrait artist, painting many official and state portraits, he is represented in significant public, corporate and private collections in Ireland and abroad. Born in 1965, he graduated from University College Dublin in 1987 with a degree in History of Art and English, and from the National College of Art & Design in 1991 with a BA in Fine Art Painting. He works in a representational style, in both painting and drawing. He has exhibited extensively in group exhibitions in Ireland and abroad, and has had 7 solo exhibitions. James is a full Member of the Royal Hibernian Academy, was elected to Aosdána in 2008 and recently elected to the Board of Governors of the National Gallery of Ireland.