James Voshell grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in St. Michaels on a farm adjacent to the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. He spent his early youth, while not working along side his family in the fields, examining and drawing the local flora and fauna.  His small town school didn't offer art classes, but because of his determination to learn the basics of art, he enrolled in a mail-order art institute. He thrived creatively through this early education, and after high school graduation furthered his education at the Maryland Institute College of Art. He graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1965. 

James left MICA with a BFA  in Art Education and worked in the Baltimore County school system for 7 years. He left that job to strike out on his own so that he could support himself with his own artwork. Since 1970 he's never looked back, working long and sometimes grueling hours, months and, occasionally, years on his projects. He has participated in over 120 invitational and juried exhibitions in the Mid-Atlantic region, winning numerous awards and commissions. 

Some of James' larger works were painted on the sides of city buildings where he participated in Baltimore's mural project. Some of these murals have been destroyed, like "The Checker Players", 1976, once at Rt. 40 West, and "Children at Play", 1975,  once at West Lombard St. Several murals still exist, like "The Carrollton Ridge Mural", 1990, West Pratt St., and "The EZ Store Mural", 1992, on Reisterstown Rd. and Northern Parkway.

James painted city images while he lived there, 1961 - 1991, creating hundreds of canvases exploring intimate moments of that era. Most of these works are now in private and public collections. One of these images, "The Baltimore Street Arab", 1980, is one of his paintings that was reproduced as a limited edition, full color print. It's very popular with those who remember the ponies and 'Arabbers' of the city. Copies of this print are still available for sale (see image in Gallery, Available Art and Limited Editions pages).

Today James lives on a 270 year old farm in Parkton with his long time love, Lynne Jones (visit lynnejonesart.com). He moved out of his studio in West Baltimore in 1991 in order to be back in the graces of a more natural environment, much like the one he grew up with. He's once again painting the beauty of flowers, trees, wildlife, and landscapes, still enjoying the complexities of nature at his easel. He paints in a wood stove heated barn, overlooking open fields and forests. He's planted bird and wildlife friendly trees and shrubs close by to keep nature's creatures healthy so that they may continue to honor us all with their beauty and mysteries.