Joshua Chambers
Joshua Chambers is a painter who works in acrylic, pen & ink and printmaking. Described as elusive and happily odd, Joshua's work echoes the philosophy of absurdist playwrights and deconstructed sets. Receiving his Master of Fine Arts from Louisiana Tech University in 2009 and his Bachelors of Art from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma, Joshua's work has been published in New American Paintings, Creative Quarterly, and Studio Visit Magazine. Chambers work can currently be found in Graphite Galleries in New Orleans, Ann Connelly Fine Art in Baton Rouge, and The Agora Borealis in Shreveport Louisiana. His works are in the permanent collections of the Masur Museum of Art in Louisiana, the Lessedra Gallery in Bulgaria, and numerous private collections. Chambers lives in Bossier Parish with his wife Leigh Anne and their daughter Sophia.
Artist Statement
Many cultures have literary or religious traditions that recognize life’s duality using parabolic characters whose symbolic actions or attributes often create conflicting meanings. I capitalize on this concept in my work by using broader cultural references to create cryptic tableaus inspired by my emotional states and interactions with others. This process provides audiences with seemingly untethered points of reference to inform the meanings and narratives they perceive within my work. To ensure this type of interaction, I depict my characters in moments of contemplation immediately preceding their resulting actions. I also set them in depthless landscapes of saturated color washes thereby leaving each character’s agency and circumstances to be defined by viewers.
Curriculum Vitae
Education:
Master of Fine Arts, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, Louisiana
Bachelor of Arts, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Gallery Affiliation:
Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
Ann Connelly FIne Art, Baton Rouge, LA
Agora Borealis, Shreveport, LA
Publications:
Creative Quarterly 40 (online gallery), 2015
Shreveport Times, Critical Review by Robert Pincus, August 2014
Pelican Bomb, Critical Review by Tori Bush, August 2014
Art in America, August, 2013
New American Paintings, No. 106: South Edition, 2013
Shreveport Times, Critical Review by Luaren Buscemi, July 2013
Art Takes TIme Square, 2012
Art-City, Critical Review by Mateeka Quinn
Creative Quarterly 21, 2011
New American Paintings, No. 88: South Edition, 2010
Studio Visit: Volume 9, 2009
The Red Clay Survey: 2007 Exhibition Catalogue pg. 28, 2007
Permanent Collections:
Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Harry Shearer and Judith Owens
Lessedra Art Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
Osage Gallery in The Gilcrease Museum of the Americas, Tulsa, OK
Grants/Awards
2014 Ann Connelly Fine Art Award, ArtMelt 2014
2013 Best of Show, Critical Mass, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council
2012 Merit Award Summer Show, St. Tammany Parish Art Association
Second Place 49th Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art
Individual Artist Career Advancement Grant, Louisiana Division of the Arts
2011 Honorable Mention ArtMelt 2011, Louisiana State Museum
2010 First Place 23rd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art
Honorable Mention 47th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art
2009 Second Place 22nd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art
2008 Best of Show LA Tech Juried Art Show, Louisiana Tech University
Exhibitions (*solo show):
2015
Recent Acquisitions & Favorites, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Summer Spalsh Exhibition: featuring emerging artists, Ann Connelly Fine Art, Baton Rouge, LA
New Works: Dirty Linen Night, Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
Art Melt, Capitol Park Museum, Baton Rouge, LA
*Joshua Chambers: small works on paper, Frame of Mind, Ruston, LA
*Joshua Chambers: Painting, LSMSA Gallery, Natchitoches, LA
Surreal Salon 7, Baton Rouge Gallery: center for contemporary art, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: Shag)
Critical Mass 3, artspace, Shreveport, LA
52nd Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (juror: Sandra Firmin)
2014
*You'll Miss the Birds Completely, Arender Gallery, Monroe, LA
To be Continued: The Power of Suggested Stories in the Art of Rachel Stuart-Haas, Joshua Chambers, and Taffie Garsee, Artspace, Shreveport, LA (curator: Robert L. Pincus)
Art Melt 2014, Capitol Park Museum, Baton Rouge, LA (jurors: Eric Robert Dallimore, Ben Thompson, Katie Pfohls)
*WAM: featuring Joshua Chambers, Bossier Arts Council, Bossier City, LA
Art Exhibition II, Norsworthy Gallery, Shreveport, LA
Identification, Target Gallery, Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA (juror: Dara Engler)
Critical Mass II, ArtSpace, Shreveport, LA
Generationless: Skateboard Art, ArtSpace, Shreveport, LA
51st Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (curator: Kelly Shindler)
2013
Enigma, The Gallery at Manship Theatre, Shaw Center for the Arts, Baton Rouge, LA (curator: Kelli Scott Kelley)
New Work: Lidia Altagracia and Joshua Chambers, Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
*You, me, and everything inbetween, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA (critical review by Lauren Buscemi)
Computer Aided, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (curator: Benjamin Hickey [catalogue])
*The Funny Thing Was . . . , Leslie Powell Gallery, Lawton, OK
Critical Mass, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA (juror: Lauren Buscemi)
Louisiana Purchase: 2nd International Juried Competition, LA Tech, Ruston, LA (juror: Barbara Bloemink, Anderson Ranch)
Surreal Salon 5, Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: N.C. Winters)
2012
Joey Slaugter and Joshua Chambers, Graphite Gallery, New Orleans, LA
25th September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA (juror: Linda Stein [catalogue])
Dirty Linen Night, Graphite Gallery, New Orleans LA
*with an apple in his mouth, Livaudais Gallery, Monroe, LA
Chambers.Reans.Slaughter, Gallery Fine Art Center, Bossier City, LA (curator: Susan Brunner)
*Between Two Unlike Things, Piney Hills Gallery, Ruston, LA
Summer Show, St. Tammany Parish Art Association, Covington, LA (juror: Miranda Lash)
49th Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (juror: Liza Simone)
Surreal Salon IV, Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: Casey Weldon)
*Emerging Artist: Joshua Chambers, East Bank Gallery, Bossier City, LA
2011
*Ordinary people can, that is their secret, Art Innovations, Ruston, LA
24th September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA (juror: Keith Perelli [catalogue])
ArtMelt 2011, Louisiana State Museum, Baton Rouge, LA (jurors: Benjamin Hickey, Kelli Scott Kelley: Professor of Painting, Rachel Wolff)
*The Works of Joshua Chambers, The Gallery at Northeastern, Tahlequah, OK
Mixed Bag, Upstairs Gallery, Monroe, LA
Louisiana Purchase: National Biennial Juried Exhibition, LATech Gallery, Ruston, LA
*Lots of monkeys smoke cigarettes, Livaudais Gallery, Monroe, LA
The Sketchbook Project, Art House Co-Op, Brooklyn Art Library, Brooklyn, NY
Wintery Mixed Masterpieces, Piney Hills Gallery, Ruston, LA
2010
*Holiday Arts Tour, Turbo Goat, Ruston, LA
New American Paintings, Livaudais Studio, Monroe, LA
23rd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA
*Internal Sublime, Wright Gallery, TAMU, College Station, TX
47th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Joshua Chambers and Emily Ezell, East Bank Gallery, Bossier City, LA
Art Melt 2010, Louisiana State Museum, Baton Rouge, LA
Studies and Depictions, Meadows Museum of Art, Shreveport, LA
2nd NW LA Artists' Triennial Competition, Meadows Museum of Art, Shreveport, LA
*What now?, Turner Art Gallery, Centenary College of Louisiana, Shreveport, LA
2009
22nd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA
World Art Print Annual - Mini Print 2009, Lessedra Art Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
International Miniature Print 09, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, CT
46th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
OX 09 Contemporary Art Exhibition, Enterprise Center, Ruston, LA
2008
Unfamiliar Ground: New and Nontraditional Media, RFD Gallery, Swainsboro, GA
Louisiana's Finest: Photography Exhibition, Arender Gallery, Monroe, LA
2007
The Red Clay Survey, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
Professional Experience:
2012-present: Talented Art Teacher, Bossier Parish Schools
2011-2012: Talented Art Teacher, Ouachita Parish Schools
2010-2011: Curator of Education and Public Programs, Masur Museum of Art
2009-2010: Lecturer in Art, Drawing, Life Drawing Centenary College of Louisiana
2009-2010: Museum Educator, Meadows Museum of Art
2007-2009: Instructor of Record, Drawing I & II, Color Theory, LA Tech University
Professional Development:
2015 Gallery Section Committee: CoolSpace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA
2013-present Gallery Selection Committee, Bossier Arts Council, Bossier City, LA
2011
Juror, George Rodrigue Foundation for the Arts Art Contest, New Orleans, LA
Juror, Claiborne Jubilee Art Contest, Claiborne Parish, LA
2010
Artist in Residence, Texas A&M, College Station, Texas
Joshua Chambers is a painter who works in acrylic, pen & ink and printmaking. Described as elusive and happily odd, Joshua's work echoes the philosophy of absurdist playwrights and deconstructed sets. Receiving his Master of Fine Arts from Louisiana Tech University in 2009 and his Bachelors of Art from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma, Joshua's work has been published in New American Paintings, Creative Quarterly, and Studio Visit Magazine. Chambers work can currently be found in Graphite Galleries in New Orleans, Ann Connelly Fine Art in Baton Rouge, and The Agora Borealis in Shreveport Louisiana. His works are in the permanent collections of the Masur Museum of Art in Louisiana, the Lessedra Gallery in Bulgaria, and numerous private collections. Chambers lives in Bossier Parish with his wife Leigh Anne and their daughter Sophia.
Artist Statement
Many cultures have literary or religious traditions that recognize life’s duality using parabolic characters whose symbolic actions or attributes often create conflicting meanings. I capitalize on this concept in my work by using broader cultural references to create cryptic tableaus inspired by my emotional states and interactions with others. This process provides audiences with seemingly untethered points of reference to inform the meanings and narratives they perceive within my work. To ensure this type of interaction, I depict my characters in moments of contemplation immediately preceding their resulting actions. I also set them in depthless landscapes of saturated color washes thereby leaving each character’s agency and circumstances to be defined by viewers.
Curriculum Vitae
Education:
Master of Fine Arts, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, Louisiana
Bachelor of Arts, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Gallery Affiliation:
Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
Ann Connelly FIne Art, Baton Rouge, LA
Agora Borealis, Shreveport, LA
Publications:
Creative Quarterly 40 (online gallery), 2015
Shreveport Times, Critical Review by Robert Pincus, August 2014
Pelican Bomb, Critical Review by Tori Bush, August 2014
Art in America, August, 2013
New American Paintings, No. 106: South Edition, 2013
Shreveport Times, Critical Review by Luaren Buscemi, July 2013
Art Takes TIme Square, 2012
Art-City, Critical Review by Mateeka Quinn
Creative Quarterly 21, 2011
New American Paintings, No. 88: South Edition, 2010
Studio Visit: Volume 9, 2009
The Red Clay Survey: 2007 Exhibition Catalogue pg. 28, 2007
Permanent Collections:
Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Harry Shearer and Judith Owens
Lessedra Art Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
Osage Gallery in The Gilcrease Museum of the Americas, Tulsa, OK
Grants/Awards
2014 Ann Connelly Fine Art Award, ArtMelt 2014
2013 Best of Show, Critical Mass, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council
2012 Merit Award Summer Show, St. Tammany Parish Art Association
Second Place 49th Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art
Individual Artist Career Advancement Grant, Louisiana Division of the Arts
2011 Honorable Mention ArtMelt 2011, Louisiana State Museum
2010 First Place 23rd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art
Honorable Mention 47th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art
2009 Second Place 22nd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art
2008 Best of Show LA Tech Juried Art Show, Louisiana Tech University
Exhibitions (*solo show):
2015
Recent Acquisitions & Favorites, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Summer Spalsh Exhibition: featuring emerging artists, Ann Connelly Fine Art, Baton Rouge, LA
New Works: Dirty Linen Night, Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
Art Melt, Capitol Park Museum, Baton Rouge, LA
*Joshua Chambers: small works on paper, Frame of Mind, Ruston, LA
*Joshua Chambers: Painting, LSMSA Gallery, Natchitoches, LA
Surreal Salon 7, Baton Rouge Gallery: center for contemporary art, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: Shag)
Critical Mass 3, artspace, Shreveport, LA
52nd Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (juror: Sandra Firmin)
2014
*You'll Miss the Birds Completely, Arender Gallery, Monroe, LA
To be Continued: The Power of Suggested Stories in the Art of Rachel Stuart-Haas, Joshua Chambers, and Taffie Garsee, Artspace, Shreveport, LA (curator: Robert L. Pincus)
Art Melt 2014, Capitol Park Museum, Baton Rouge, LA (jurors: Eric Robert Dallimore, Ben Thompson, Katie Pfohls)
*WAM: featuring Joshua Chambers, Bossier Arts Council, Bossier City, LA
Art Exhibition II, Norsworthy Gallery, Shreveport, LA
Identification, Target Gallery, Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA (juror: Dara Engler)
Critical Mass II, ArtSpace, Shreveport, LA
Generationless: Skateboard Art, ArtSpace, Shreveport, LA
51st Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (curator: Kelly Shindler)
2013
Enigma, The Gallery at Manship Theatre, Shaw Center for the Arts, Baton Rouge, LA (curator: Kelli Scott Kelley)
New Work: Lidia Altagracia and Joshua Chambers, Graphite Galleries, New Orleans, LA
*You, me, and everything inbetween, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA (critical review by Lauren Buscemi)
Computer Aided, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (curator: Benjamin Hickey [catalogue])
*The Funny Thing Was . . . , Leslie Powell Gallery, Lawton, OK
Critical Mass, Artspace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA (juror: Lauren Buscemi)
Louisiana Purchase: 2nd International Juried Competition, LA Tech, Ruston, LA (juror: Barbara Bloemink, Anderson Ranch)
Surreal Salon 5, Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: N.C. Winters)
2012
Joey Slaugter and Joshua Chambers, Graphite Gallery, New Orleans, LA
25th September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA (juror: Linda Stein [catalogue])
Dirty Linen Night, Graphite Gallery, New Orleans LA
*with an apple in his mouth, Livaudais Gallery, Monroe, LA
Chambers.Reans.Slaughter, Gallery Fine Art Center, Bossier City, LA (curator: Susan Brunner)
*Between Two Unlike Things, Piney Hills Gallery, Ruston, LA
Summer Show, St. Tammany Parish Art Association, Covington, LA (juror: Miranda Lash)
49th Annual Juried Competition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA (juror: Liza Simone)
Surreal Salon IV, Baton Rouge Gallery, Baton Rouge, LA (juror: Casey Weldon)
*Emerging Artist: Joshua Chambers, East Bank Gallery, Bossier City, LA
2011
*Ordinary people can, that is their secret, Art Innovations, Ruston, LA
24th September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA (juror: Keith Perelli [catalogue])
ArtMelt 2011, Louisiana State Museum, Baton Rouge, LA (jurors: Benjamin Hickey, Kelli Scott Kelley: Professor of Painting, Rachel Wolff)
*The Works of Joshua Chambers, The Gallery at Northeastern, Tahlequah, OK
Mixed Bag, Upstairs Gallery, Monroe, LA
Louisiana Purchase: National Biennial Juried Exhibition, LATech Gallery, Ruston, LA
*Lots of monkeys smoke cigarettes, Livaudais Gallery, Monroe, LA
The Sketchbook Project, Art House Co-Op, Brooklyn Art Library, Brooklyn, NY
Wintery Mixed Masterpieces, Piney Hills Gallery, Ruston, LA
2010
*Holiday Arts Tour, Turbo Goat, Ruston, LA
New American Paintings, Livaudais Studio, Monroe, LA
23rd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA
*Internal Sublime, Wright Gallery, TAMU, College Station, TX
47th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
Joshua Chambers and Emily Ezell, East Bank Gallery, Bossier City, LA
Art Melt 2010, Louisiana State Museum, Baton Rouge, LA
Studies and Depictions, Meadows Museum of Art, Shreveport, LA
2nd NW LA Artists' Triennial Competition, Meadows Museum of Art, Shreveport, LA
*What now?, Turner Art Gallery, Centenary College of Louisiana, Shreveport, LA
2009
22nd September Competition, Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA
World Art Print Annual - Mini Print 2009, Lessedra Art Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
International Miniature Print 09, Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, CT
46th Annual Juried Exhibition, Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, LA
OX 09 Contemporary Art Exhibition, Enterprise Center, Ruston, LA
2008
Unfamiliar Ground: New and Nontraditional Media, RFD Gallery, Swainsboro, GA
Louisiana's Finest: Photography Exhibition, Arender Gallery, Monroe, LA
2007
The Red Clay Survey, Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL
Professional Experience:
2012-present: Talented Art Teacher, Bossier Parish Schools
2011-2012: Talented Art Teacher, Ouachita Parish Schools
2010-2011: Curator of Education and Public Programs, Masur Museum of Art
2009-2010: Lecturer in Art, Drawing, Life Drawing Centenary College of Louisiana
2009-2010: Museum Educator, Meadows Museum of Art
2007-2009: Instructor of Record, Drawing I & II, Color Theory, LA Tech University
Professional Development:
2015 Gallery Section Committee: CoolSpace, Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport, LA
2013-present Gallery Selection Committee, Bossier Arts Council, Bossier City, LA
2011
Juror, George Rodrigue Foundation for the Arts Art Contest, New Orleans, LA
Juror, Claiborne Jubilee Art Contest, Claiborne Parish, LA
2010
Artist in Residence, Texas A&M, College Station, Texas
