Bio

James Reiman’s work investigates the origins and manifestations of gender through individual identities. Reiman’s past work featured an examination of both the masculine and feminine gender roles while he photographed several members of the transgender community of the Pacific Northwest. Since then, he has redirected the focus of his research onto the foundations of masculinity. Reiman is interested in how men identify with other men in order shape and define their personal and cultural identities. Reiman imagines that this typically begins under the watchful eye of the father and is fertilized and manipulated by the cultural standards. Though the act of image construction, Reiman is continually exploring how his fatherless childhood was impacted by the unrealistic expectations of the media, His personal experiences with loss, sensitivity, memory, overcompensation, frustration, desire and the affects of media influence are key informants of his artistic practice.

James Reiman was born in Wenatchee, Washington in 1979. He received his BFA in Photography with a minor in Art History from Central Washington University in 2005 and his MFA from the University of South Florida in 2009. Reiman currently lives and works in Tampa, FL where he teaches courses in Photography and Digital Imaging as an adjunct professor at both the University of South Florida and the Art Institute of Tampa.

Self Portrait as Father and Son, 2008