Jason Kimes is a Contemporary artist with many sculptures in public and private collections. He received a BFA in Sculpture from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2002, and an MFA in Sculpture from Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 2005. Kimes works in cast metals, welded steel, wood and found objects. His work examines both the individual and social groups, and their relationship with physical space, in the built environment and the natural world.
Kimes often represents the human figure to illustrate various external concepts, encouraging viewers to visualize themselves in place of the figure to create an awareness of the physical space we each inhabit.
Kimes has outdoor sculpture throughout the U.S. and Canada including numerous private collections, the Lauren Roger's Museum of Art and municipalities such as Hattiesburg MS. Kimes has been awarded several public grants and multiple artist’s fellowships from the Mississippi Arts Commission.
His work ELEVEN, which memorializes the men who died during the Deep-Water Horizon accident, has been featured in books, articles and podcasts which highlight bringing awareness to the human tragedy of the unfortunate oil spill that followed. He has contributed to sculpture focused organizations such as the Mid-South Sculpture Alliance and the International Sculpture Center and has also been a panel speaker at events from the University of Oklahoma to Ironbridge, England. Contributing to the development of the next generation of sculptors is important to Kimes who frequently meets with student groups and has been invited to jury multiple exhibitions. He lives and maintains a studio in Laurel, Mississippi.