He employs various techniques for these paintings? whatever he feels will set the tone and mood. The curvilinear aspect of wooden boats offers added interest and a beautiful design to Johnson’s paintings. A work of art truly succeeds when an undisputed, shared emotional connection exists between the viewer and the artist with the work of art as a conduit.Ī painting’s design and mood expressed is important to Johnson and he often spends considerable time in the naming of his artworks in order to create a uniform idea. Each scene must speak to this artist? especially if he is to communicate his feelings to his viewers in a subsequent painting. It’s not enough to just paint a pretty scene. As he walks the paths of the quiet places he loves, Johnson searches for something that touches his aesthetic and emotional sensibilities. In recent years however, Johnson’s old friends (the hand-hewn boats and rugged buildings of the past) have begun to disappear from our countryside.

Even in the early years of his life, he identified with that gentle scenery and the quiet strength of the icons of rural life.įor over 42 years, Johnson has sought out subjects that strike an emotional chord within him. The seeds of Johnson’s art began to germinate during childhood summer trips with his family to the countryside. While some artists’ paintings capture a moment in time, Johnson’s scenes are timeless-existing day after day as if it were the scene you view every morning outside your kitchen window. Johnson’s paintings preserve our memories of these things for the future-the endless existence of its contents. Although some of these objects no longer exist where they once stood, they do continue to live on in the paintings of A. The carefully crafted homes, barns and boats speak of an unhurried existence where quality and care were more important than mass production. As we head into the 21st century, the hand made relics of the recent past are rapidly disappearing.

Still Life by A.M. Johnson