Every piece of art begins long before the first mark is made. It starts with a feeling , a walk along the Yeppoon foreshore at dawn, the way light splashes across the skies, or the quiet stillness of a dragonfly hovering over still water.
I'm Jet James, and I've been making art in Central Queensland since 2005, but created and chased the dream of being an artist by the age of 15. My work spans etching, printmaking, painting, and mixed media, but the thread that runs through all of it is the same: emotive art crafted with soul.
Where It All Began
Growing up surrounded by my Dad's artwork, the quiet pushing of oil paint on the canvas on a rainy night, left a lasting impression on me. After the loss of my parents, art was a form of healing, and beyond the trauma, all that is left is love. I quickly learnt life is brief, and it forever changed the lens in which I saw the world. Moving to Yeppoon and its natural beauty also shaped everything about how I see the world. The Capricorn Coast isn't just where I live, it's where I find my subject matter, my colour palette, and my sense of wonder. The reef, the wetlands, the big open skies, the botanicals, the birds, they're all in the work, even when you can't see them directly.
The Process
I work primarily in etching and printmaking, which are slow, deliberate processes. That slowness is intentional, it forces presence, and presence is what makes the work feel alive.
Each print is pulled by hand in my studio, which means no two are exactly alike. The slight variations in ink, pressure, and paper are part of what makes an original print a genuine original.
What Drives the Work
Nature, memory, and transformation, these are the themes I return to again and again. I'm drawn to moments of transition: from pain to healing, the shift between seasons, the way a landscape holds the memory of weather, the transformation of a creature from one state to another. Art, for me, is a way of honouring those moments before they pass.
If you've ever stood at the edge of the ocean and felt something you couldn't quite name, that's the feeling I'm chasing in every piece.
Browse the collection and find the piece that speaks to you .
