 James was influenced by the Mexican muralists such as Diego Rivera and artist Francisco Toledo and was inspired by Aztec, Mayan, and pre-Columbian sculpture.In the 1990s, James Simon moved to São Paulo, Brazil where he opened a sculpture studio in Villa Madalena, a cultural district of São Paulo.James friended and collaborated with some of São Paulo and Brazils most distinguished artists including mixed media artist Jose Roberto Aguilar and composer and writer Jorge Mautner.