River Market ArtSpace

Jimmy Crosthwait

Jimmy Crosthwait calls himself an artist inside and out. His works speaks for itself. He has wall hangings and sculptures featured both inside and outside many homes in the MidSouth. A stainless steel bird sculpture perches poolside at Cybill Shepherd's Riverfront home in Memphis, and comedian Robin Williams owns one of his tabletop Zen compasses. "My art is so substantial that it will be around more than 5000 years longer than most artwork," jokes Crosthwait. He prefers to describe his work from a review in The Memphis Flyer that said his work was "a mixture of dry wit, understated sophistication, and a whole lot of soul."

Many people know Crosthwait best from his 20 years at the Pink Palace Museum. He led educational puppet programs for about 10,000 school children each year. His interest in art began when he studied commercial art at Tech High School in Memphis. After several years at the University of Memphis, Crosthwait began his career in puppetry in Florida for seven years and spent a year with the Electric Circus in New York before returning to Memphis. "Puppetry is the embodiment of many art forms," explains Crosthwait, "and a way of making my sculptures move." He did everything from writing the scripts to painting backdrops and manipulating the puppets.

As if that isn't enough, he also plays music and creates clay sculptures and beaded mobiles and chimes in his Arlington, Tennessee home and studio.