This La Jolla artist skipped the gallery scene. And here’s what happened

For artists, gaining entry to exquisitely designed homes is never a straight line. Yet doors open for those handpicked by Holly Hunt, the interior designer who revolutionized the showroom concept. La Jolla’s James Kendall Higgins is one such artist, joining the ranks of Christian Astuguevieille and Christian Liaigre before him. 

Featured in Hunt’s LA and Manhattan showrooms are Higgins’ hand-sculpted convex and concave sculptures. The pieces capture light, yes, but also Instagram likes, gracing numerous private collections from Miami to Copenhagen. He is one of 50 artists that fit neatly into Hunt’s world of refined luxury with an elegant, modern aesthetic.

From his La Jolla studio, Higgins employs strategies that echo sculptural forms, applying layers of reflective pigment, polymer resin, and Italian marble dust over each component. Boundaries are deliberately blurred between drawing and three-dimensional space.

The goal, he says: “To bridge the white cube of gallery and museum spaces with domestic interiors: developing discursive works that engage and react to the environments within which they reside.” 

He studied Fine Art and Design at Virginia Commonwealth University and completed a fellowship at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. His work has been commissioned for numerous private and corporate collections. Design clients include AME Architects, Ohara Davies-Geatano, McAlpine House and Richard Le Sand.