He studied at Cooper Union, the Art Students League of New York, and abroad at the Royal Academy of Antwerp, Belgium.
[1] Early in his career he won the Temple Gold Medal of the Pennsylvania Academy for his portrayals of the Marvin Family.
[citation needed] Chapin had a significant impact on the early history of Regionalists Thomas Hart Benton, John Steuart Curry, and Grant Wood with his 1920's series of portraits of the Marvin family.
[7] Largely due to his opposition to United States foreign policy in Southeast Asia, he moved to Canada in 1969, and died in Toronto in 1975.
[1] The James Ormsbee Chapin Papers, which contain correspondence, sketches, articles, reproductions, and proofs, were donated to the Delaware Art Museum in 1994.