James W. Washington, Jr.: Many Hats, One Spirit

Many Hats, One Spirit is a retrospective exhibition that highlights the life and work of Dr. James W. Washington, Jr. (1908 – 2000). The title references “many hats,” paying homage to this multifaceted man who was a visual artist, poet, gardener, community builder, civil rights activist, and spiritual person. Included are stone carvings for which he is best known, plus drawings, paintings, prints, and collage work loaned from numerous public and private collections. Also on view are poetry, ephemera from his life, and items from the Civil Rights Era from Washington’s personal collection. At the top of the museum’s grand staircase are re-creations of his home and studio, to provide context for his life and the art of stone carving.

BIMA reflects Washington’s “living legacy” by including the work of more than thirty current and former Artists-in-Residence from the Dr. James and Janie Washington Cultural Center in Seattle. These artists pursued diverse media such as stone carving, painting, printmaking, mixed media work, poetry, and writing in Washington’s former studio, home, and garden for selected periods of time. Some artworks were generated during these residencies, and others reflect more current endeavors.

Deloris Tarzan Ament, a prominent arts writer, noted, “The eminent African American sculptor and painter James Washington Jr. was a leading member of the Northwest School. He grew up in Mississippi. After working as a WPA artist, he came to the Puget Sound region in 1944 to work in the Bremerton Naval Yard as a journeyman electrician. He found exhibition space at Frederick & Nelson’s Little Gallery and through that venue met Mark Tobey (1890-1976) and other Northwest artists. He places his visionary paintings and sculptures in the service of religious faith. They express the unity of God, humankind, and nature, with symbols derived from freemasonry and from the animal world.”