NEW WEBSITE IN THE WORKS: Major update to this site to be launched this summer. This site hasn't been updated in about 4 years. Some new projects listed below. Much more in the works.
Thanks for stopping by. - JM


James Mejia: Toronto based artist and designer. Co-Founder and Art Director of Hand Drawn Dracula. 2001-2007 art & design contributor and co-director for the Dependent Music Collective, which launched the careers of Holy Fuck, Land of Talk, and Wintersleep. A graduate of Political Science, Visual Studies and Art History from The University of Toronto.

Past projects have included: Art Department illustrator for Universal Pictures' The Perfect Man starring Hilary Duff. Designer for many diverse independent and major label artists including Feist, Great Big Sea, Bruce Cockburn, Ron Sexsmith, By Divine Right, Greg Keelor, Pilot Speed, Great Lake Swimmers, Holy Fuck, and Wintersleep.


Completed Projects:
Six Shooter Records (web design)
Interstellar Rodeo (web design + poster)
Dusted (web + package design)
Modern Superstions (package design)
National Parks Project (package design)
Hand Drawn Dracula (web design)
Corey Hart (web design)
Bruce Peninsula (package design)
Hawksley Workman MEAT, MILK (web + package design)
Rebekah Higgs (web + package design)
Oh Susanna (web design)
Bishop Morocco 'Our Time' (video)
Little Girls 'White Night' & 'Daydream' (video)
Josh Reichmann / Dopes 'Wildly Waiting' (video)
Holy Fuck LATIN (web + package design)
Basia Bulat Heart of My Own (website)
Luke Doucet Steel City Trawler (website)
Justin Rutledge The Early Widows (website)
The Swallows Demystified (package design)
+ more

Awards and Nominations:
2011 JUNO Award Nomination for Package Design Of The Year (By Divine Right 'Mutant Message')
2007 7th Annual REELWORLD Film Festival Award Winner for Best Music Video (Wintersleep 'Jaws of Life')
2006 JUNO Award Nomination for Package Design Of The Year (Wintersleep 'Untitled')

This is the vinyl version and the European CD artwork for Wintersleep's Welcome to the Night Sky, which earned them a nomination for Alternative Album of the Year and the award for Best New Group at the 2008 JUNO Awards. The artwork is collaborative with Melissa Kearney & Paul Murphy. - www.wintersleep.com

I was happy to work with Paperbag Records for the Winter Gloves' debut release, About a Girl. I have been a fan of Charles' song writing for a few years now... I designed the CD, t-shirts, and the soon to be published myspace & website. - www.winterglovesmusic.com

My photography portfolio includes press shots for Holy Fuck, Off the International Radar, Everything All the Time and Brian Borcherdt.

The Holy Fuck photo sets have appeared in publications such as Uncut Magazine, NME Magazine, Vice UK, Rolling Stone, Fader, Exclaim!, CBC News...

Holy Fuck Barn Session Photos here.

I've designed t-shirts for the Szoldier fashion label, Holy Fuck, Great Lake Swimmers, Great Big Sea, Winter Gloves, Wintersleep, Hawksley Workman & Feist (which were based on Feist's shadow pupeteer stage show by Clea Minaker).


Check out some Szoldier T-shirts (designed w/ Greg Blagoev) in this Highrise article and also at www.szoldier.com.

I had the honour to design Fortune's Favour CD, vinyl, posters, stage back-drop & t-shirt for Canadian icons Great Big Sea. - www.greatbigsea.com

I designed Jenn Grant's Orchestra for the Moon website. A beautiful record... "a potent sense of atmosphere and a hint of great things to come" - Globe and Mail


www.jenngrant.com

I designed Crimes CD artwork for These United States. "melodic and amusing ideas to the post-Fugazi landscape - protesting heartless romantic antics." the village voice - www.myspace.com/theseunited

I did the photography and design for Holy Fuck's 7" & 12" vinyl for Lovely Allen - available through Young Turks/XL Records & The Beggars Group USA. - www.beggarsgroupusa.com

I designed the websites for (Weewerk) & Teenage USA Records. Great Canadian DIY labels with a history that includes Peaches, Elevator, Eric's Trip, Great Lake Swimmers, Two-Minute Miracles and the FemBots to name a few. Go check out great Canadian indie music!


www.weewerk.com
www.teenageusarecordings.com

Group Show · Fountain Contemporary

January 18th - 30th, 2008
652 Queen Street West, Toronto CAN
opening : January 18th 2008
with performances by Brian Borcherdt, Julie Fader & Tony Dekker

Chris Mills w/ Brendan Canning & friends
Clint Lavado
Erica Beyea
Howie Tsui
James Mejia
Jay Malinowski
Jeff Lee
Julie Fader
Justin Peroff
Nicole Legault
Scott Cudmore
Stewart Jones
Tarik Mikou

Curated by James Mejia


www.groupshow.com

I designed the artwork for Great Lake Swimmers' 2007 Your Rocky Spine UK single released on Nettwerk Records.The CD single features live performances and a Scott Cudmore music video. In addition, I designed the posters, ads & the GLS website. - www.greatlakeswimmers.com

I designed and launched Oh Susanna's Short Stories website. The record is released in Canada & Europe via Outside Music & Rounder. "[Short Stories] is a beautifully rounded collection of songs" - Rolling Stone Magazine (Australia)


www.ohsusannamusic.com

Our Favorite Games · Group Art Show
Presented by POP Montreal Festival 2007

October 7th - 11th 2007
My Hero Gallery, 3655 Blvd. St. Laurent, Montreal CAN
opening : October 7th 2007
with performances by Brian Borcherdt

Chris Mills w/ Brendan Canning & friends
Erica Beyea
James Mejia
Jay Malinowski
Jeff Lee
Julie Fader
Justin Peroff
Melody Hovey
Nicole Legault
Stewart Jones
Tara Azzopardi
Tomas Del Balso

Curated by James Mejia


www.ourfavoritegames.com

I designed the artwork for Holy Fuck's LP on CD and Vinyl. This included all artwork, photography, layout & design. In addition I designed the posters, band photos, myspace & website. - www.holyfuckmusic.com

I designed the artwork for Great Lake Swimmers's Ongiara CD and Vinyl. Released worlwide on Nettwerk and on vinyl by Weewerk, Ongiara is a haunting and beautiful record that features special guest appearances by singer-songwriter Serena Ryder, Bob Egan (Blue Rodeo), Sarah Harmer and Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy, Arcade Fire).-www.greatlakeswimmers.com

Wintersleep : Jaws of Life (Music Video)
Directed by Sean Wainsteim w/ James Mejia
Sean Wainsteim, producer/editor | 235 Films, production co.

The 7th Annual Reelworld Film Festival Award for Music Video
The 2007 nominations included filmmakers Kevin DeFreitas and Bruce McDonald as well as videos for The Dears and Bedouin Soundclash.-www.reelworld.ca

Holy Fuck's limited edition 2007 EP on cd & vinyl · The album layout designed by James Mejia and Brian Borcherdt. Chad Van Gaalen sketches were collaged by James Mejia. The CD cover was gold stamped and embossed. "The thing even apes Run-DMC on its album sleeve. Grab it before it's gone I tell you." URB magazine

I designed the artwork for Lily Frost's Cine Magique (www.lilyfrost.com). A very beautiful record. I also designed The Swallows Awkward Situation CD (www.theswallows.ca). Glenn Milchem's (drummer for Blue Rodeo and Holy Fuck) side-project "imagines a chance meeting between Luke Doucet and Coldplay... Crazy Horse..." - Brad Wheeler, The Globe & Mail

2006 Juno Award Nominee - Best Album Artwork for Wintersleep "Wintersleep" Dependent Music :
James Mejia / Jud Haynes.

Jud Haynes illustrated the short story pull-out tucked away in the album sleeve. Short story
by Paul Murphy.

www.wintersleep.com

I had the honour of designing the artwork for a Ron Sexsmith album. Time Being is an amazing record from a classic, critically acclaimed, and down-to-earth singer songwriter. The package includes a 12-page booklet with some illustrations by Ron.-www.ronsexsmith.com

I designed the MXD · Music Export Denmark campaign for their North American showcases featuring Danish music from the Figurines (figurines.dk) The Blue Van (thebluevan.com) and Kira & the Kindred Spirits (kiramusic.com).

CDs, posters, postcards and multiple ad mattes for brochures, magazines and newspapers were produced for various markets including Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Seattle, Los Angeles and Austin.


www.rosa.org/musicexportdenmark

Websites I have designed include:

www.brianborcherdt.com
www.contrived.ca
www.lukedoucet.com
www.sixshooterrecords.com
www.telesoulrecords.com
www.theswallows.ca

Wintersleep's Danse Macabre video features some collaboration of artwork and animation between myself and video director Sean Wainsteim (Ghostmilk). Awarded The COAST Best Music Video 2006 and nominated for ECMA Best Canadian Music Video.


www.seanwainsteim.com
www.wintersleep.com

direct video link : danse macabre

I designed the album artwork for the debut CD Fire by Danish singer /songwriter Pernille, the self-titled debut CD from HolyFuck and the vinyl edition of Wintersleep's Untitled.

The Perfect Man 2005
Universal Pictures - starring Hilary Duff

Hilary Duff meets a young artist who draws a comic book of Duff as a princess warrior. I drew the series of comic book pages and sketches which appear throughout the film (hot props). I also supplied the artwork for the young artist's room.


www.theperfectman.com

direct artwork link : the perfect man

I designed the album artwork for Dead Air Verbatim by Contrived, By Divine Right's Sweet Confusionand The Remains of Brian Borcherdt's The Remains of Brian Borcherdt Vol.2.

"In this new collection, Mejia combines his multiform media interests into a synthetic whole that is comprised of an admixture of wood, aluminum, water colour, ink, photography (found and taken), digital graphics and more."
- Jon Murphy