M. Jane Johnson's mixed-media paintings are built piece-by-piece, layer-on-layer to create depth and energy. Join us tonight, Thursday, at 6:30 pm for Opening: Jane Johnson's "Splendid Fortitude"!
Posted by The Art League on Thursday, October 12, 2017
Splendid Fortitude
by M. Jane Johnson
October 5–November 5, 2017
You’ve read about our splendid table on view this month. Soon, we’ll be featuring interviews with this month’s splendid award winners from our juried show.
Today, we’d like to introduce you to the mixed-media paintings in “Splendid Fortitude” by M. Jane Johnson.
You can see how the artist works in the video above: layer by layer, piece by piece, using scrapes of paint and scraps of paper to build her scenes.
What’s not in the video is the inspiration for these paintings. These graceful geisha — “artists” — began to emerge in Johnson’s work after a friend was diagnosed with cancer. That diagnosis revealed strength, grace, and Splendid Fortitude in the forms on the canvas.
Whether because they’re looking away from the viewer, obscured by a parasol, or simply abstract of face, you won’t see specific people in these paintings. Instead, the artist invites you to see your own strength, reflected.
“Splendid Fortitude” is on view at The Art League through November 5, 2017.