Marseille, nature, and nostalgia. These are the three elements that seem to animate the work of American artist James Tralie. The young artist gained attention on Instagram for his unique worlds. digital Overgrown with water and vegetation. A creativity inspired by his time in Marseille during his studies and catalyzed by the COVID-19 lockdown, during which he learned free 3D modeling software through countless YouTube tutorials. But before his creative journey, which would lead him to offer his services to Apple, Facebook, Adobe, and the Marriott group, the young man had an extraordinary career path that few artists can boast. While studying geosciences at Princeton University, he landed an internship at NASA. The prestigious American aerospace agency hired him a month after he graduated. His goal? To share the discoveries made during various missions to the Moon and other planets through films and documentaries. A mission that allowed him to combine his scientific mind with his artistic sensibilities. Unlike his contemporaries, James Tralie does not create completely unreal universes, devoid of any real connection to reality. His approach thus remains connected to both our world and his own, a universe inhabited by the Gothic buildings of his student days or by the fond memories he gleaned on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in the calanques of Marseille.
Lisa Agostini
