Artist Turns Ordinary into Extraordinary

Jamie Lester sees beauty in the ordinary, the sights most people take for granted, a father carrying his sleeping child on his shoulders, a mother feeding her baby. It is his artistic talent, however, that turns the ordinary into the extraordinary.

His award-winning work has been exhibited in museums and galleries across West Virginia, as well as in Boston. Lester's design of the New River Gorge Bridge was selected for the state quarter from more than 1,800 entries. He will join Gov. Joe Manchin and representatives of the U.S. Mint in introducing the commemorative West Virginia quarter Friday at the state Capitol.

"After looking at a bunch of sketches for the quarter design, my wife (Michelle) insisted that I use the New River Gorge Bridge design," Lester explained. "I wanted to pay homage to the natural beauty of West Virginia, and was sketching Blackwater Falls, Seneca Rocks, etc.

"None of them had the focal point or effective design of the bridge design. Maybe you should be talking to Michelle instead of me," he joked.

"It makes me feel proud to be a West Virginian, and blessed to have this opportunity to show my love for my scenic mountain home state," Lester emphasized.

Lester grew up in Oceana, graduated from Oceana High in 1992. "I was a very quiet, shy child," Lester recalled. "I spent most of my time drawing and painting, or playing in the woods. "Growing up in Oceana was kind of like growing up in the country, although looking back I was very much a town kid. I never learned much about farming or country work.

"I was interested in art first, then music when I learned to play guitar at 15. "I took up skateboarding, and spent a lot of time at the (shopping center). "From about fourth grade I knew I would be an artist," Lester explained. "I have always loved drawing and painting the human figure. "When I took an interest in 3-D, I naturally tried the human figure in clay. Sculpture is an engaging medium because it exists in three dimensions. You have to walk around it to see it. There are so many opportunities when designing a figure in space."

After graduating from OHS, Lester went on to earn his bachelor of fine arts from West Virginia University. "Morgantown was like a metropolis to me then. I knew I wanted to be an artist, so there was never any deliberation about what I was to major in," he recalled. "I had never seriously sculpted at this point, so I focused on drawing, painting and printmaking. It wasn't until my sophomore year, when I took a pottery class, that I felt clay and was hooked."

After earning his degree, Lester opened his own business, Lester/Sculpture in Morgantown, specializing in bas relief portrait sculpture for the memorial industry. He has completed hundreds of such portraits and has extensive experience in sculpting donor walls, trees of life and bronze plaques.

One of his creations, two grieving firefighters, is part of the Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance, dedicated to the Brooklyn firefighters who lost their lives in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The firefighters are cast in bronze and attached to the monument, a granite wall measuring 20 feet wide by 12 feet high located in Keyspan Park on Coney Island.

The son of Debbie and Larry Lester of Shady Spring, at least some of his artistic talent is inherited. "My mother is an artist, so there were always plenty of art supplies around the house," he explained of her influence. "Dad was very passionate about nature photography. "I wasted lots of paint. Mom would get mad at me for using too much paint and ruining her brushes, but mostly she and Dad were very supportive. I got to learn many techniques and mediums at an early age. "My dad was a coal miner, and he loved to work," Lester said. "I got that gene from him, I guess, because my wife is always catching me wanting to work all the time.

"I enjoy spending time with my family, but if I get in the groove of working, I could do it all the time. I love it that much.

"My wife has been the biggest influence in my life," Lester noted. "She helps me solve problems, to see the right answer in a fog of wrong choices. I can always count on her to give me her honest opinion. She advises me on moral decisions, artistic decisions and business decisions. I would not be where I am today if not for her love and support. Of course, I help her out sometimes, too!"

The father of three children, Lester enjoys working in his home studio in order to be close to his family.

"I love to eat dinner with my family. We eat most meals together here at the house, and if I miss a family dinner because of travel, etc., I feel unsettled and out of place. "I like to play my mandolin and sing songs with the kids. "I enjoy the opportunity to solve visual problems every day — to wake up every day and sculpt! I enjoy the ability to work at my home studio and be close to my children as they are growing up."

While he enjoys most aspects of his career, he doesn't enjoy everything.

"I enjoy the business side of dealing with people, but the bookkeeping side of business can be tough for me," he admitted.

"The hardest lesson I ever learned was how to stand up and take responsibility for my actions, and to be master of my own destiny," he emphasized. "It's so easy to blame others for where you are or aren't, but it's hard to say to yourself, "I can be anything I want to be, if I stand up and try hard to be the best I can be."