James Watkins (PhD candidate)

Origin
Santa Ana, California, USA

Education
BA, Studio Art, Wheaton College
MCS, Christianity & the Arts, Regent College

Thesis topic
Working title:  'God, Artist and Material: Comparing divine and artistic creativity', under the supervision of David Brown.

It is the aim of Jim's project to argue that a comparison between divine and human creativity is not only a valuable component of a Christian theology of art, but that it also can serve as the basis of an ethic for the artist’s relation to his materials.  Therefore, this project considers various attempts to compare divine and artistic creativity, and it assesses those comparisons according to their ethical implications for the artist's relations with his materials, and according to their theological implications for one's understanding of divine creativity.

Jim's research interests include science and theology; art history and theology; philosophy and psychology of creativity; Andy Goldsworthy; Picasso’s Guernica; Joseph Beuys.

Other information
In his spare time, Jim enjoys painting, board games, Star Trek (with a leaning toward Next Generation), and coffee.  Most of all, Jim enjoys spending time with his wife Emily and their sons Jonah and Rowan.  Jim is also a regular contributor to the ITIA-based blog, Transpositions.

Contact information
jw588@st-andrews.ac.uk

 

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