About

James Hendricks is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and community arts practitioner based in St. Louis, Missouri.

His work investigates memory, disappearance, and the fragile structures that remain after images begin to fail. Working across photography, drawing, collage, installation, encaustic wax, plaster, and mixed media, he explores how photographs, domestic spaces, and everyday objects continue to carry traces of personal and collective history.

Alongside his studio practice, James has developed a broad teaching career focused on making contemporary art accessible to diverse communities. He teaches drawing, painting, collage, mixed media, experimental image-making, and process-based studio practices for children, teens, and adults through museums, galleries, schools, and community organizations.

His teaching emphasizes curiosity, experimentation, and close observation, encouraging students to build confidence through exploration rather than perfection.

James is also the creator of Create & Connect, an inclusive arts education program, Experimental Image Lab, a research-based framework for contemporary image making, and Afterglow Expressive Arts, a community-centered initiative exploring creativity, recovery, and personal transformation.

Alongside his studio practice, James, designs and facilitates expressive arts programs that support creativity, resilience, and personal growth. His work draws on years of experience in community arts education, recovery-focused programming, and trauma-informed teaching to create welcoming, inclusive environments where participants can explore ideas, build confidence, and connect through the creative process. He believes art has the power to foster reflection, strengthen relationships, and contribute to emotional well-being without requiring participants to have artistic experience. While James is not a licensed art therapist, he works within the scope of the role as a teaching artist and expressive arts facilitator, and values collaboration with licensed mental health professionals when therapeutic goals or clinical support are appropriate.