Flowers set to present artwork in London

After a successful pilot project in Chicago, 21 Artists: London, an unprecedented arts-based cultural regeneration project taking place in 3Space's Blackfriars Hub, kicks off April 29 - May 17.

During that time, a mix of innovate, experimental and socially-driven artists from a wide range of disciplines, cultures and ages will be featured daily, creating work in the Blackfriars Space based around the theme of transformation.

The final exhibition will be held on May 21. James Flowers, a native of White Castle, will present his work in London on May 17.

The 21 Artists Program website is twentyoneartists.com/21-artists-london

"In order to prepare for London I am creating more pieces and coordinating with Charles Jean-Pierre, the artists whom I will present with," Flowers said. "We will lead a workshop in which we utilize a blend of socio-politically relevant topics in London and American hip-hop lyrics to create socially conscious works of art."

Flowers, 29, graduated from White Castle High School as valedictorian in 2001 and then from Southern University in 2007 with a Master's Degree in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling with honors. He moved to Washington D.C. two years ago to work as Dean of Students for MacFarland Middle School.

"When I first came to DC, I began painting portraits for a steady growing client list," Flowers said. "I then began to create contemporary pieces that I had on display in galleries such as Attitude Exact, located on Capitol Hill."

It wasn't until he started painting murals with Charles jean-Pierre that he gained more recognition.

"My most prominent are the 20-foot portrait of Chuck Brown, a musical legend in DC who recently passed, located in the Petworth neighborhood on historic Georgia Avenue, just blocks from Howard University, and a 20x30-foot mural celebrating the 100th anniversary of Holy Rosary Church in downtown DC," Flowers said.

"I have done several murals in low-income neighborhoods as a part of a community revitalization push and murals in schools in an effort to beautify them."

"In the future I would like to create more recognizable series of portraits and also more prominent murals in DC. Lately, many of the neighborhoods in DC have undergone gentrification and I, along with other artists, am working on preserving the history of the neighborhoods and displaced residents."

Flowers is the son of Sandra Flowers and Julius Fleming. He has been drawing and painting ever since he could hold an ink pen as a toddler.