James King - Men die, 2026 - Oil on hardcover book - 19x13cm

James King’s exhibition Beneath Her Branches explores a fraught relationship between mother and child, where the fight to overcome a difficult upbringing ultimately leads to a sense of freedom and autonomy. He charts this story through a series of found photographs, where a cast of anonymous and unrelated characters, forgotten to history, are brought back to life.

These emotionally charged images suggest complex individual histories. Elusive figures loom as silhouettes, casting a quiet yet commanding presence over the people in frame. Many are dwarfed or surrounded by trees; thick trunks, creeping branches, a wall of prickly cactus. Through these motifs, James suggests the lingering psychological imprint of that difficult but formative childhood relationship.

However, just as one has to choice to overcome this difficult chapter, these paintings can be read in another way. Many of these characters assert their agency and claim their space. They meet the viewer’s gaze, commanding our attention and inviting us into these intimate moments charged with both tension and calm, anxiety and conviction. Beneath the branches, they endure. Some even flourish and find peace.

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