"Do your hats do things? Mine do. Who said fine art can't be fun?"

~ Jonathan James, making fine art fun since the 90's.

Explore and order your own transforming, original and imaginative hat, by Jonathan James. Some call his handcrafted designs 'fashion.' Other's call it 'fiber art' and 'sculpture.' Custom orders cater to your color and shape whims. Let Jonathan create a work of art, just for you.
Home ° Web Gallery of Hats ° Custom Orders for Jonathan James ° The "Woodstock Hooker's" Bio ° Artist's Blog ° Free, Pre-Purchase Consultation° Contact ° Hat Models

The "Alien Coral Purple Puppet Hat"

Another original piece of wearable art, by Jonathan James, started in Berea, KY and finished in Knoxville, TN, USA.

I was traveling and visiting some friends in the south, in December and January (during the South's cold spells), when I dreamed and created this hat. Here's it's story.

I was completing another work, sipping coffee at the Berea Coffee & Tea Co. A woman saw me finishing it up and asked to buy it. By the time I was done, she had a check for me. Her hat was of warm wools, started in chilly Woodstock, NY. I didn't even get a chance to photograph the little thing. I was forlon that my newest artwork was already gone.

I headed out to go shopping find yarn. I was low on funds, having just gone through a divorce and having closed my yearling gallery. I went to the only place I could afford, a huge box store.

I picked out a fuzzy, synthetic yarn that had eye-popping colors. It was as if a cotton candy maker had bought a yarn mill and then taken some psychedelics and colored his yarn. It also stood out, even in the beige, browns and greys of the Kentucky winter. I thought it would make something very interesting. I also had some very, very fine wool, from Maine, that would complement it with it's pale, wintery purple and white transitions.

My friend, the glass artist Jeremy Pfeifer, discussed the climate in Kentucky and south. We both agreed the hats I had been making in New York, for the winters there and north, were too hot for half the United States. So, I set out to make something that reminded me of Spring in the south and would breath enough. I wanted people to go for walks looking beautiful, being happy and enjoying the outdoors wearing art. I also like hats that move in different directions than the wearer. I set out with these goals in mind, using the yarn on hand (other peoples left over yarn bits and some of my own, plus the wild colored synthetic yarn I had bought).

I made the crown of the hat of the wool, and the cotton candy popcorn color bursts of fuzzy synthetic fits around the sides of the head and caresses the ears. I finish the last few rows with the wonderful, handmade Maine yarn. I went back and finished all the particular coral flower like buds on top of the hat. I made something that was partly recycled yarn, partly handmade yarn and partly synthetic.

I designed and built, for the southern United States of America, a hat flowery, ventilated and ready to go to any party and dance in for a while. I had a hat that would dance with the wearer, feel very soft to the touch and contrast in bright happiness with the drab hues of winter darkness and muted grays and browns.

This hat may not speak for itself, but it dances for itself . . . on the wearer or even with the wind.

And thus was born the "Alien Coral Purple Puppet Hat" (try saying that three times fast!).

This is one of the hats on display in California at "Art 2 Wear: Accoutrements," LA/Ontario International Airport (ONT). A group show by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), in partnership with the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.