Exhibit of last works by James B. Thompson ’73 available to view online

“Tide Charts: Ebb and Flow,” an exhibit of mixed-media artworks by James B. Thompson ’73, is on view through Feb. 25 in Western Oregon University’s Cannon Gallery of Art.

Thompson taught at Ripon College, Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Alaska and, lastly, as a professor of art and curator in the art department of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. He died in 2019.

“In ‘Tide Charts: Ebb and Flow,’ James investigated the ever-changing, liminal space between the land and sea,” says Paula Booth, who organized the exhibit. “Using the tide as metaphor, he explored concepts as vast as the nature of time and how memory informs the future. Of the series he said, ‘I would like to think that these works played a role in tiding me over as I paused before heading for the next shore.’”

An exhibit talk with Thompson’s wife, Martha, was recorded Jan. 12 and will be available for viewing on the gallery website along with exhibit photos.

(Photo: Detail of “Limpet,” from 2019)