This tribute to The Doors was painted on an
actual door from a home in which Jim Morrison
lived in Pinellas County.
Jim captured the many faces of the late
David Bowie in this work.
MARCH/APRIL 2016 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 43
➤
Clearwater artist Jim Warren
combines surrealistic dreams
with a Norman Rockwell type
of purity that makes his work unique
and memorable. That is why, through
five decades as an artist, his creativity
has been recognized in everything
from book covers and record albums
to portraits of the famous and near
famous, as well as renderings of
Walt Disney’s best-known and loved
characters. Those who know me
are not surprised that, as a lover of
Salvador Dalí’s work, I am also a
fan of Jim’s artistic style. We have
chosen him to create 11 covers for our
magazine since we met him almost 20
years ago.
Jim began drawing in art classes,
where he never fared particularly
well – not due to the quality of his
efforts, but rather because he chose to
go his own way instead of following
his teachers’ directions. Fortunately,
he read an article in Life magazine
about Salvador Dalí, which led him
to prepare for fame and fortune in
the same manner Dalí had. Jim loved
Dalí’s work for its technical skill, but
was even more fascinated by Dalí’s
refusal to follow the usual rules that
applied to art and to paint whatever
he pleased. This independent
philosophy has motivated Jim since
that time to follow his own instincts
and to spend his time and efforts on
projects that interested him. As a
result, his wild surrealistic work, book
and record covers, fine art paintings
and portraits, not to mention his
Disney work, have blended, crossed
and inspired new themes throughout
his career, following new and different
outlets for his art. By being fluid and
open to experimentation, Jim never
loses his desire to create his next
masterpiece and never knows what
he will create, as he is always open to
new ideas and directions.
s