It is a sweet irony that I should learn of the New Scientist article the same day that I toured the Hanford B Reactor where the plutonium for Fat Man, and classified thousands of other warheads, was produced. In Hanford, enough plutonium to destroy the Earth hundreds of times over. In Seattle, Jim produces plutonium in quantities practical only for conceptual art.

The Arts Catalyst, a contemporary art agency in London that commissions contemporary art that experimentally and critically engages with science, is hosting an evening to remember Jim’s life and work: James Acord: A Life in the Nuclear Age “You Can’t Make This Shit Up.”

The evening will include an exhibit of work by James Acord, stories of his work, film clips, photos, and a reading from ‘The Book of Ash’, a novel based on Acord’s life, by the author James Flint.

The Arts Catalyst
50-54 Clerkenwell Road, London EC1M 5PS

29 March, 20110
7-9.30pm
Free

Thanks to Nicola Triscott, Rob La Frenais, and everyone else at the Arts Catalyst.

You can see more on Jim’s work with The Arts Catalyst on their site:
http://www.artscatalyst.org/projects/detail/atomic_london/

Seattle Times Obituary.

Tom, Linley, Janet, and I witnessed the final trip of James L. Acord. The memorial (March 12) is probably a better way to remember Jim and his life, but it was important to us that we be there when he was cremated, and so we attended him one last time.

We put the following into the box with James for his final trip (cremation): A hand rolled cigarette of his own tobacco; some sage and wheat from Richland; a picture of Push Button, a cat he loved and who loved him back; a picture from Jake that Jim had hung in his apartment and another picture from Jake’s sister Evelyn; a book of Jim’s on loan to Tom, *Suttree* by Cormac McCarthy; and Jim’s Zeitgeist coffee punch card.

The crematorium had a much more industrial aesthetic than I anticipated. I think Jim would have appreciated it. It was an austere space with 20′ high ceilings. The massive furnace dominated the space; Jim’s box was tiny in comparison. We all said goodbye, hugged each other and cried.

View the Evite Invitation to RSVP

Please join us to remember and celebrate the life of James L. Acord who passed on January 9 in his Seattle apartment.

It is a testament to his life that his friends–his surrogate family–have banded together to handle his final affairs, honor his life, and preserve his artistic legacy. It is through his art and through his community that Jim will live on.

Food and soft drinks will be provided; beer, wine and spirits may be had from the cash bar.

Come to share stories of Jim with others who love him and to be surrounded by his drawings, paintings, sculptures, and photos of his work.

We are asking for donations in lieu of flowers to cover legal and funeral expenses and memorial arrangements. Any funds collected above cost will be donated to a charity patronized by Jim. Cash or checks written out to Sandra Bauer will be collected at the memorial.

Memorial for James L. Acord
New Orleans
114 First Avenue South
Seattle, WA 98104

Saturday March 12, 3:00 – 6:00pm

Today they posted a postcript on Philip’s piece, a thoughtful obituary.

James Acord, Alchemist for the Nuclear Age, by Jon Michaud

http://www.flickr.com/groups/1602490@N21/pool/

Some amazing history is being compiled, thanks to Arthur S. Aubry, Phil Munger, Fred Moody, Joey King, Barry Messer, Tom Putnam, Nick Vroman, Linley Storm, and others. There are over 100 photos and counting. Please share your bit of history with others by adding your own.

Jim was an only child born in Seattle on October 19, 1944, in the Holocene Epoch, to Gail Elizabeth Chapman and James Leroy Acord.

Jim was at one time a devout altar boy, a cowboy, a master stone carver in Barre VT, a farm hand, and an artist in residence at Imperial College London. Barre stone carvers respected him enough to elect him union president and despite lacking a high-school diploma, James completed post-graduate courses in nuclear engineering.   

He was a perfectionist in all his pursuits, whether sculpture, riflery or technical mountain climbing. His superlative draftsmanship is evidenced in the hundreds of finely detailed drawings of bird’s nests, seed pods, animal bones and the like, turning mundane natural objects into poignant art.

His contemporary lectures on art and science merited him world class distinction and earned him invitations to speak in England, Slovenia, Barcelona, and at universities across the United States.  He was scheduled to deliver a talk to Carnegie Mellon University in March 2011.

Jim sacrificed materially for his art and never sought to profit from it. Though eager for a public forum to share his vision, he refused many engagements if he smelled the taint of aggrandizement.  Jim was relentless in his pursuit of the right materials and would not accept the impossible. If he needed spent nuclear fuel rods to complete his art, then why should he not have them?  The word “no” did not deter him. 

Nothing captures his quixotic spirit more than his desire to transmute dangerous, unpredictable transuranic byproducts of the nuclear age into stable, harmless, and eternal works of art. He was the only individual ever granted a nuclear materials license. Though thwarted by ignorant bureaucracy and personal tragedy, Jim persisted in his quest to the end of his life.

His completed art works include the Monstrance for a Grey Horse, a monumental granite sculpture, and a series of four reliquaries. The fifth and final reliquary remains unfinished. Locals may best remember his participation in exhibitions of the 1980s and early 1990s at Seattle’s Center on Contemporary Art (CoCA). 

Jim was a rapacious reader and was well versed in topics from religion to military history. He was also an adamant and politically active liberal. 

Jim has no known living relatives, but scores of close friends, many of whom considered Jim family, are greatly mourning his passing. He was generous to a fault, literally giving away his last dollar. Jim’s wicked sense of humor and irony charmed and entertained. The artistic legacy he leaves behind will outlast us all, but for those who knew him well, his abundant heart was his greatest gift.

“The base man who desired only for wealth would always fail. The higher adepts, the true alchemists, knew that what they were really transforming was themselves. The real lead was in their own hearts and only through purity of motivation could they transform that lead into gold.” –James L. Acord  

To share your thoughts and memories, to read the contributions of others, and to learn of upcoming events to memorialize Jim, please check back here soon.

Please click on the “Thoughts” tab above and leave a comment or a memory.

You are also encouraged to contribute photos to the James L. Acord flickr pool.