Jim lives and works in Hopkins, Minnesota. He was born and raised in an interstitial space, a pocket universe between the IDS building and Amber Waves of Grain. He grew up in the wilds of Minnetonka where great mares once ran free, Dead Man's Hill swallowed sleds, and the Swamp and Woods held great treasure. The woods and swamp have shrunk, fully plundered. The hill has been capped with gardens and Dishes. And the horses have scattered West and East, North and South.

Jim is a draughtsman and painter who draws inspiration from the Boundary Waters Wilderness Canoe Area and the wild spaces Up North as well as the beasts of The West.

Jim received his undergraduate art degree from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks with coursework from the Academy de Port-Royal, Paris and University of Paris IV, Cours de Civilization Franchise de la Sorbonne. He has a Master of Fine Arts from Vesper College. Jim is the Visual Arts Manager for the Hopkins Center for the Arts and the City of Hopkins. He is also the longest tenured Superintendent of Fine Arts for the Minnesota State Fair.