{{Short description|American artist (born1974)}} {{Notability|Bio|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox artist | name = Jamie Lester | birth_date = | birth_place = Oceana, West Virginia, US | alma_mater = West Virginia University | field = Sculpture, painting
}} '''Jamie Darrell Lester''' is an American artist best known for creating ceramic, bronze, and steel sculptures that “focus on the human figure combined with imagery derived primarily from life in Appalachia, including birds, architecture, and landscape.”<ref name=":0">"WV ARTIST ON DISPLAY: JAMIE LESTER, WEST VIRGINIA SCULPTOR." ''Hashtag West Virginia.'' https://hashtagwv.com/2021/11/wv-artist-on-display-jamie-lester-west-virginia-sculptor (accessed 12/10/2021)</ref> Lester also creates paintings, digital art, and music.<ref>Associated Press. "Morgantown sculptor portrays actor Don Knotts in statue." Franklin Banner-Tribune. 25 Oct 2016. and "About Jamie Lester" ''Tamarack Foundation for the Arts''. https://tamarackfoundation.org/directorylisting/jamie-lester/ (accessed 12/11/2021)</ref>
==Sculpture== thumb|Don Knotts statue at Metropolitan Theatre, Morgantown, West Virginia Lester's award-winning sculptures have been shown in galleries in Maryland, Massachusetts, West Virginia, and the United Kingdom. Many of his sculptures have been produced as commissioned public works, including statues of frontiersman Davy Crockett, (outside the Tennessee State Capitol building in Nashville, Tennessee, 2026),<ref>Morrell Spencer (19 Sep 2025). Greenville Sun. "David Crockett Statue To Have Prominent Place On State Capitol Grounds" https://www.greenevillesun.com/news/local_news/david-crockett-statue-to-have-prominent-place-on-state-capitol-grounds/article_8ed97e63-9ff4-428f-aabc-ed943d2d01f6.html (accessed 06/01/2026)</ref> actor Don Knotts (in front of the Metropolitan Theatre in Morgantown, West Virginia, 2016),<ref name="virginian">Nichols, Cliff (18 Oct 2016). “Against the Odds: Morgantown sculptor Jamie Lester portrays the man, Don Knotts, over characters he played,” ''Fairmont Times West Virginian.'' https://www.timeswv.com/news/against-the-odds-morgantown-sculptor-jamie-lester-portrays-the-man-don-knotts-over-characters-he/article_5d54a690-94ea-11e6-a8a5-cb6bd7e18415.html (accessed 12/03/2021)</ref><ref>"Don Knotts Statue Morgantown, West Virginia: The actor best known for slapstick comedy is memorialized in his home town." ''Atlas Obscura.'' https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/statue-of-don-knotts (accessed 12/21/2021)</ref> basketball player and executive Jerry West (outside the West Virginia University Coliseum, Morgantown, West Virginia, 2007),<ref>Furfari, Mickey (14 Feb 2007). "Sculptor happy as West statue is unveiled." ''The Register-Herald'', Beckley, WV. https://www.register-herald.com/sports/sculptor-happy-as-west-statue-is-unveiled/article_fc757912-c77d-507f-ace1-44dba65cd676.html</ref> George Steinbrenner in Monument Park (Yankee Stadium), New York City,<ref>"WVU art students help create memorial for canine heroes of 9/11." WVU Today (archive). http://wvutoday-archive.wvu.edu/n/2012/10/01/wvu-art-students-help-create-memorial-for-canine-heroes-of-9-11.html (accessed 12/11/2021</ref> and the Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance at MCU Park in the Coney Island neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY.<ref>"The Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance and Tribute Walk." ''The Historical Marker Database.'' https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=61554</ref> thumb|150px|Obverse designed by Jamie Lester In 2003, Lester designed the obverse side of the West Virginia state quarter issued as part of the US Mint's 50 State quarters program in 2005. The design features the New River Gorge Bridge.<ref name="Staff Writer 2021">Staff Writer (22 Aug 2021). "Lester featured at Old Stone Room Gallery." The Register Herald. (accessed 12/10/2021</ref>
Each year, Lester creates bronze-relief busts representing new inductees to the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Florida.<ref>Harold, Zack (21 Oct 2012). Charleston Daily Mail. "Artist Makes LI Monument to 9/11 Rescue Dogs" reprinted at http://archive.longislandpress.com/2012/10/21/artist-makes-li-monument-to-911-rescue-dogs/ (accessed 12/11/2021</ref>
As of August 2021, Lester had also created over 30 statues for the Boy Scouts of America, each of which are installed at the Summit Bechtel Reserve, near Beckley, WV.<ref name="Staff Writer 2021"/> Among these is a statue of Rex Tillerson, the former United States Secretary of State who served as President of the Boy Scouts of America from 2010 to 2012.<ref>Lynch, Bill (20 Aug 2019). "Free Folk for all the free folk." ''West Virginia Gazette Mail.'' https://www.wvgazettemail.com/life/food_and_dining/freefolk-for-all-the-free-folk/article_345ff041-6869-57f9-9f65-e560b56c78aa.html (accessed 12/13/2021).</ref>
thumb|''Ascending Eagle'' by Jamie Lester, at the Summit Bechtel Reserve
In July 2023, the Boy Scouts of America announced the unveiling and dedication of Lester's bronze "Ascending Eagle" statue as part of Scouting's ''Women of Character Program'', which ran concurrent with their 2023 National Jamboree. The 8-feet-tall statue located at the Summit Bechtel Reserve is intended to inspire past, current and future generations of girls and women involved in Scouting.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-07-20 |title=To Honor and Inspire: BSA to Unveil Bronze Statue Recognizing Girls and Women in Scouting at National Jamboree |url=https://apnews.com/press-release/ein-presswire-newsmatics/boy-scouts-of-america-west-virginia-visual-arts-jerry-west-don-knotts-d8310ae52bbb81fdd0b3bbf81f18bd27 |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=News |first=E. I. N. |last2=Armstrong |first2=Scott |date=2023-07-20 |title=To Honor and Inspire: BSA to Unveil Bronze Statue Recognizing Girls and Women in Scouting at National Jamboree |url=https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/644208339/to-honor-and-inspire-bsa-to-unveil-bronze-statue-recognizing-girls-and-women-in-scouting-at-national-jamboree |access-date=2023-07-24 |website=EIN News |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2025, Lester's design for ten-foot bronze statue of Davy Crocket was selected by the Tennessee State Capitol Commission to be placed outside the Tennessee State Capitol building at Nashville in late 2026. The statue, which Lester titled Guardian of the Frontier, shows Crockett standing on a stone with two dogs, while he holds his rifle. He wears pioneer garb and a coonskin cap.<ref>Morrell, Spencer (19 Sep 2025). Greenville Sun. "David Crockett Statue To Have Prominent Place On State Capitol Grounds" https://www.greenevillesun.com/news/local_news/david-crockett-statue-to-have-prominent-place-on-state-capitol-grounds/article_8ed97e63-9ff4-428f-aabc-ed943d2d01f6.html (accessed 06/01/2026)</ref>
Other works include "Rising Cardinals" (2021), which is located between Neville and North Heber Streets in Beckley, WV. This sculpture was part of a beautification project for the city. It features four red cardinals and was constructed with the help of Lester's business partner, engineer Jeff Edwards. During an interview conducted during the public unveiling of the work, Lester said he chose the state bird of West Virginia to symbolize Beckley “rising up.”<ref>Skeldon, Katherine (26 Sep 2021). "Cardinal sculpture unveiled in Beckley, becoming a community symbol." Website of WOAY-TV, Channel 4, ABC Network, Beckley, WV. https://woay.com/cardinal-sculpture-unveiled-in-beckley-becoming-a-community-symbol/ (accessed 12/10/2021)</ref>
In an interview with Tamarack, Lester revealed that he not only sculpts in bronze, ceramics, steel, and mixed media, but also creates sculpture digitally and in virtual reality.<ref>"About Jamie Lester" Tamarack Foundation for the Arts. https://tamarackfoundation.org/directorylisting/jamie-lester/ (accessed 12/11/2021)</ref> His larger projects can take several years to complete. For example, Lester stated that he worked over 4,000 hours to create his rendering of Jerry West,<ref>Hertzel, Bob (17 May 2021). "Jerry West: Motivation comes from within." Photo caption featuring Jamie Lester. https://www.timeswv.com/news/monday_news/jerry-west-motivation-comes-from-within/article_f2c4ad0e-b6b1-11eb-8ee0-93b6b2698e41.html (accessed 12/10/2021)</ref> while planning for his Don Knotts statue began nearly ten years before the final version was erected.<ref name="virginian"/> Lester has stated that his artistic style is influenced by baroque, post-impressionism, and surrealism.<ref name=":0" />
==Painting== Lester is also an accomplished painter whose works sometimes combine his figurative representations with Appalachian themes. For example, Lester created a series of watercolor paintings showing the faces of coal miners wearing miner's helmets, which was utilized in the non-profit public awareness campaign "Remember the Miners" that launched in 2010.<ref>"Jamie Lester Prints and Stationary." ''Remember the Miners''. http://www.remembertheminers.org/ (accessed 12/11/2021).</ref> A watercolor series Lester created in 2005 features giantized people amid Appalachian architecture.<ref>"Meet Jamie Lester." Tamarack Gallery. https://tamarackgallerywv.tumblr.com/post/113427036672/meet-jamie-lester (accessed 12/11/2021).</ref>
==Early life and education== Born into a working-class family in Oceana, West Virginia, Lester began creating art at the age of three, due to the influence of his mother, a watercolor painter, and his father, a coal miner who introduced to him to whittling and fort building. Whittling and fort building, Lester explains, are "kind of sculptures."<ref name=":2">Julian, Norman (2018) "Artist Jamie Lester," Goldseal Magazine, Vol.44, Issue 2, pg. 56. Listed at Goldenseal Index: https://archive.wvculture.org/goldenseal/2018index.html (accessed 12/10/2021). Reproduced at https://archive.wvculture.org/goldenseal/summer18/JamieLester.html (accessed 12/10/2021)</ref>
Lester later attended West Virginia University and graduated with Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1997. He has continued his education by studying specific artists and styles. In 2015, Lester traveled to Rome, Italy, where he completed a course of study on the figurative sculpture of Gian Lorenzo Bernini.<ref name=":2" /> In 2011, he travelled to China, where he taught as a guest artist at the Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute.<ref name=":2" /> He also studied in the Chinese city of Hangzhou.<ref name=":3">"Jamie Lester: Monongalia County, Sculpture." ''Tamarack Foundation for the Arts.'' https://tamarackfoundation.org/directorylisting/jamie-lester/ (accessed 12/10/2021</ref>
==Vandalia Bronze and Love Hope Center for the Arts== After graduating from West Virginia University in 1997, Lester founded Vandalia Bronze in Morgantown, WV. Aside from operating as Lester's workshop, Vandalia Bronze hosts the Nampara Arts Cooperative, which provides rentable space to ceramic artists, including equipment and kilns, and public instruction.<ref name=":3"/>
In 2021, Lester co-founded the Love Hope Center for the Arts, a non-profit educational space in Fayetteville, WV.<ref>Skeldon, Katherine (01 May 2021). "Fayetteville welcomes new art center." ''WOAY-ABC TV''. https://woay.com/fayetteville-welcomes-new-art-center/ (accessed 12/11/2021)</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, Jamie}} Category:1974 births Category:21st-century American sculptors Category:American watercolorists Category:Artists from Monongalia County, West Virginia Category:Artists from Wyoming County, West Virginia Category:Ceramists from West Virginia Category:Living people Category:Painters from West Virginia Category:People from Morgantown, West Virginia Category:People from Oceana, West Virginia Category:Sculptors from West Virginia Category:West Virginia University alumni