James Richard Campbell

James Richard Campbell, 80, a Troy native whose artistic talent brought him notoriety in the local community and beyond, passed away at Flowers Hospital in Dothan, AL, on Sunday, September 4, 2022. Visitation in his memory will be held on Saturday, September 17, 2022, at Green Hills Funeral Home, located at 1621 South U.S. Highway 29, Troy, AL 36079 from 1-2pm. He will be laid to rest beside his parents at Oakwood Cemetery in Troy following the visitation. 

The son of James Claude Richard Campbell and Estelle Adcock Campbell, he grew up assisting his grandfather, a local sign painter, in the 1950s. After one year at Troy University followed by service in the Air Force, James attended Art Center College of Design, in Los Angeles, and painted portraits at Disneyland and the Queen Mary. Upon graduating in 1972, he moved to Connecticut and worked as one of the top commercial illustrators in the country. His paintings appeared on magazine covers, including Time, and in numerous other publications. Among his other clients were Reader’s Digest, Random House Books, Home Box Office and 20th Century Fox, for which he was commissioned to illustrate a poster for the film Star Wars in 1976. In the 1990s, James returned to Troy and focused on portrait painting. A retrospective of his artwork was held at Troy’s Johnson Center for the Arts in 2021. 

James is survived by his brothers Steven Campbell (Brenda) of Troy, AL, and Harold Campbell of Memphis, TN, as well as his five children: Scott Campbell of Bonita Springs, FL; Megan (Bruce) Chavez of Arlington, TX, and her three children, Andrea (Kendrick) Wilson, Paige (Jose) Garcia, and Brittney Chavez; James Campbell (Elisa) of Richmond, RI, and his children, Aubrey, Brynne, and Chace; Christopher Campbell (Jennifer) of Woodstock, GA, and his children, Atticus and Edith; and Brandon Campbell (Nicole) of Decatur, GA; plus 11 great-grandchildren.