James Darum has spent over half a century in Arizona since moving here with his family in his teens. He studied commercial art at Northern Arizona University, leading to a successful career in illustration. James' cowboy paintings are larger-than-life, much like the space that the American old west takes up in our collective imagination. The bold colors and stark contrasts in the paintings demand attention just like the cowboys, outlaws and lawmen of Arizona's past. James uses acrylic paints on canvas to achieve the colorful vibrancy of his work.