Hoffmann’s blogs, lectures provide
more details about sketch artists

If you attend a Civil War living history or re-enactment in Kentucky, chances are you’ll see Jim Hoffmann.

He’ll be the one with a sketchbook in his hand developing drawings of the event while portraying a period sketch artist for a national newspaper.

Hoffmann, a state-employed artist in the government’s Creative Services division of the Finance and Administration Cabinet, has been seriously doing sketches of Civil War battles since 2002.

In Jim’s case, he portrays artist Theodore Davis, the much-traveled Harper’s Weekly correspondent who gained a reputation for his accurate drawings of War-Between-the-States battles and their locales.

Jim, a Versailles resident, looks the part in his 19th century attire equipped with sketchbook, pencils and charcoals and, often, with an easel and large drawing paper when a finished image begins to take shape. Later, he may set up an easel and use his sketches and notes to produce a larger representative image. Such a setup attracts a crowd and gives Hoffmann the opportunity to provide a living history lesson about Civil War sketch artists and their roles in reporting conflicts to newspaper readers.

He’ll be providing a formal presentation about his craft and portrayal at the Battle of Richmond Re-enactment Weekend Aug. 25-26.

Always a student of history, Hoffmann began sketching Civil War battles scenes in 1992. For 10 years, he viewed re-enactments as a spectator as he did his drawings. People encouraged him to do a sketch artist portrayal and, in 2002 at Perryville, he visited the sutlers and “bought shoes, pants and the basics.” He chose the persona of Davis after joining the Seventh Kentucky as an official re-enactor.

In recent years, Jim has been producing a blog about his experiences, providing detail about his sketches and paintings and the history that’s behind them. Charcoals, pastels and acrylic paints are used for prints that are reproduced and, often, sold at Civil War events.

Jim, who began drawing regularly at age 10, has a degree in fine arts with a specialty in commercial art from Western Kentucky University. He was a commercial artist with the Thoroughbred Record magazine and a printing company before joining Kentucky State Government. He’s been an artist with Creative Services for 21 years.