Hello, my name is Sonora James (She/Her) I was born in Philly, grew up in West Virginia, and have lived in Tempe, AZ for the last three years. I have a Bachelor’s of Science in Fashion Design from West Virginia University and spent time in NYC during a Devil-Wears-Prada-esque internship for a designer who is now cast on Real Housewives of New York.

My favorite art form is what I like to call “Trash Art”. I started by using free resources that were accessible to me: mainly junk mail that overflowed in my mailbox. It’s very rewarding for me to take something ugly or annoying or useless and create something from it. My favorite pieces I’ve made are built from raw meat photos I gather from Food City adverts. 

Many of my creations reflect absurdity and playfulness. In my jewelry making, I use toys. In my collage making, I use meat. In my sculpting and upcycling, I like incorporating worms. Our world we live in today involves information overload with memes juxtaposed to war news. It is hard to grasp reality and stay grounded. To survive, I live by the motto “Be Goofy”. It is of the utmost honor if I can make someone smile, chuckle or stop in their tracks to go “What the hell is that?”. This is why I make art.