James Perry Wilson

[2] Wilson's training as an architect influenced his diorama painting technique; he focused on careful observation of source material, illusionistic representation of three dimensions, and mathematical precision.

In 1933 he met an employee of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), who encouraged him to show his landscape paintings to the director of diorama construction, James L.

[3] Clark was interested at once, but asked for the opinion of the diorama painter, William R. Leigh, who approved of Wilson's work.

Wilson painted a total of eleven backgrounds in the African Hall of the American Museum of Natural History before moving to the North American Mammal Hall, where he painted several dioramas and established a reputation as a talented artist among the museum's administration.

Wilson was given an 18-month leave of absence from 1944 to 1945 to paint three dioramas for the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.

"[8] Wilson sought to remove the artist's subjective emotional interpretation by letting his many references guide his brush.

His colleague, Ray deLucia recalled "the look on his face when someone questioned an effect he had included in a background painting.

[11] In his spare time between diorama work, Wilson created geometric paper constructions of multi-faceted polyhedra.