Kelley Johnson recent paintings
bruno david gallery
Kelley Johnson recent paintings
September 10 - November 6, 2010 Bruno David Gallery 3721 Washington Boulevard Saint Louis, 63108 Missouri, U.S.A. info@brunodavidgallery.com www.brunodavidgallery.com Director: Bruno L. David This catalogue was published in conjunction with the exhibition Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings Editor: Bruno L. David Catalog Designer: Yoko Kiyoi Photographer: Richard Sprengeler Design Assistant: Claudia R. David Printed in USA All works courtesy of Bruno David Gallery and Kelley Johnson Cover image: Kelley Johnson’ studio with Slow Hum, (St. Louis, Missouri) September 2010. Photo: Richard Sprengeler Copyright Š 2010 Bruno David Gallery, Inc. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of Bruno David Gallery, Inc.
CONTENTS
Essay by James yood Essay by Vera Lyons Afterword by Bruno L. David Checklist of the Exhibition Biography
1
Essay by James Yood
2
E
d Paschke used to say that painters should spend time thinking about how to keep a viewer in a picture. By that he meant that there
were avenues one could investigate to overcome the short attention span of most viewers of art, their four or five second terse perusal followed by moving on to the next picture. How could you slow that up, how could you cajole the viewer to stay in a few more seconds, how could you extend the visual engagement until that fulcrum point where the viewer was hooked, where the balance had shifted and the painting was more or less in control of the viewer and not vice-versa? I thought of Paschke when I first encountered the recent work of Kelley Johnson. Every image—and I mean every image—became like another pool to dive into, a realm of visual intrigue that wouldn’t allow me to turn away, each work absorbing and self-sufficient. It wasn’t pictorial tricks that Paschke was talking about, no gimmicks or manipulative gestures (though some of those do exist, some interesting color combinations that attract the eye, certain ambiguous treatments of the figure or push/pulls between abstraction and representation, these will slow up a viewer’s rapid scan until they puzzle them out). Rather, Paschke had in mind a call for determination and intensity on the part of the artist, a kind of committed integrity and conviction that would somehow invite closer examination and lead the viewer to make that leap from looking to seeing. Johnson’s work surprised me, it didn’t matter much if he was slathering on paint in amorphous gestural abstraction or setting up taut and rigorous geometrical patterns, it became secondary if he was setting up meandering loops that hugged the surface or different pictorial planes that seemed to careen into deep space, I stopped caring about whether he was effacing his images with bold areas of black or skirting at the edge of cartoon imagery. All that mattered was that each painting was absorbing, completely and totally internally consistent, each one taking a path, sometimes a differing path, sometimes a surprising path, to what became its inexorable conclusion. The ten large paintings on display here seem to me to represent ten tough and hard-won journeys, ten ways a painter works his or her way through one of the core questions often asked by an artist alone in his or her studio—“OK, I’ve done this to the painting, now what is it telling (offering, challenging, denying, impeding, preventing, etc.) me to do next?” Johnson certainly begins these journeys with a level playing field. Each of the ten canvases is vertical and measures either 74 x 60 or 48 x 38 inches. He stretched ten white voids, ten templates of the abyss, and then, as painters always have and always will, he made a mark, a beginning toward an uncertain and distant end. And only Johnson knows what came next, certainly the ebb and flow of decision and counter-decision, certainly hours and hours where he was economical and focused, and then those hours where he was undoubtedly
3
disconcerted and lost. All we as viewers get to see is the final moment in this process, when the mark-making stops, when it becomes irrelevant to his intentions to make one more brushstroke. It’s fairly common for an artist’s hand to have habitual tendencies, ways of manifesting personhood that while successively modified over the course of a career bespeak certain core attitudes and concerns. For Kelley Johnson it seems that for a long time those have been forceful and ambiguous shapes and forms that sat firmly in the front of deep spaces, richly painted in a usually dark palette, a predilection for stripes and differing paint textures, a kind of churning of allusive subject matter into tense psychologically fraught compositions that, if it did not seem clichéd to note, remind one a bit of Max Beckmann, another artist with great connection to St. Louis. There is almost always a darkness to Johnson, a kind of restlessness, a tumult that makes his work exercises in the changeling and inconstant nature of reality that seemed to me at times powerful descents into a maelstrom. While I’ll argue for some important differences in this new body of work, the images that appear closest to what earlier concerned Johnson are Untitled I, Untitled VI, and Construction to Avoid Drowning. Bold diagonal arcs sometimes suggest just themselves and sometimes seem to accrete toward some kind of actual structure. But the spatial order that underpinned most of Johnson’s work a few years ago is gone, or at the very least has been turned upside down, imploded into some topsy-turvy realm where everything seems to careen about wildly, ready to come asunder, chasing after itself in a largely fruitless effort to escape the chaos that everywhere threatens it. Light still carefully models most of the elements in these paintings, and two (Untitled I and Construction to Avoid Drowning) in different ways take the viewer into layers of space, but without offering a place as well. Untitled II and Untitled V also contain elements that recall earlier interests of Johnson, the meandering loops in the former and the bold stripes in the latter. They seem two very wistful paintings, almost elegiac and tender, and they provide a kind of respite here, a breathing space where the eye can relax a bit. They’re rich images that in their way delight in the chromatics and tactility of oil paint, its inherent lusciousness that for six or seven hundred years has never lost its allure. But those same elements almost seem employed against themselves in Slow Hum and Untitled IV. Here most forcefully Johnson seems to suggest turning away from the skills and experiences of more than a decade as a professional artist, here he returns painting to something
4
instinctive and fundamental, almost a primal messing about of liquids. Slow Hum looks as if it could have been painted with either end of the brush or with the artist’s fingers. There’s a velocity to both images, a hurried and impetuous quality that teeters at the edge of losing control. The beauty of the colors only slightly ameliorates the relentless surging of paint here, these are an examination of how much a trained hand can go wild, work against skill, and through the slathering and slithering of paint evoke a sense of a world gone asunder. Johnson puts a thick hood of the severest black around Slow Hum, as if he could cap the chaos, stop it from running wild, impose his will on the passions seething below. But he can’t, and this and its colleague are true expressionist images, apertures into something very raw and visceral. All of these paintings are, in their own ways, similarly edgy and engaged. They become like open-ended chapters in a stream of consciousness narrative, more suggestive than specific, but windows toward an acknowledgement of the slender threads that hold existence together. Their wisdom seems bought at a high price, and as each image absorbs our attention, keeping us in Paschke’s few extra seconds and more, Kelley Johnson offers that most profound of all engagements, the glimpse into the mind of another human being and, if even for a succession of moments, possession of it and all that implies.
James Yood directs the New Arts Journalism program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where he teaches modern and contemporary art history. He writes regularly for Artforum magazine.
5
Essay by Vera Lyons
6
K
elley Johnson’s work is a study in contrasts: a visual battlefield. Johnson expresses a sense of gloom through the lugubrious haze that
hangs over the tones of his paintings. In the background, however, blazing stripes assault the eyes, jabs of turquoise punch through drably colored, tubular forms, and chaotic splatters interrupt the seemingly planned geometry of the work. These canvases, both aggravating and intriguing, present an unresolved and unidentifiable conflict. Johnson, who began as a figure painter, sees his shift towards abstraction as the natural progression of his work as an artist. This shift is embodied by the contrast between his recent works and a previous painting depicting his studio. To the unfamiliar viewer, this earlier painting seems incongruous with the rest of Johnson’s oeuvre—nearly everything in the image, though rendered in blurred, lingering strokes, is, nevertheless representative of a recognizable collection of objects inhabiting an actual space which bears little resemblance to the otherworldly abstract environment evoked by his most recent works. Yet Johnson’s characteristic sense of tension prevails. The studio he painted is inviting, yet distant. Lit by a warm glow, the presence of which is encroached upon, even threatened - by darker, confining walls, the room seems lived-in. It is filled with painting materials yet maintains that atmosphere of loneliness that artists occasionally experience as they go about their solitary task. So, on one of those rare St. Louis summer days on which the humidity doesn’t stick to your lungs as you breathe, I found myself in Johnson’s current studio. Light streamed through open windows to expose canvases that visually overwhelmed me. I had never seen his work on such a grand scale, and began to feel quite like Alice passing through the Looking Glass, finding myself in a new world in which everything was topsy-turvy. The effect was heady and exhilarating, but my thoughts as I pulled away from each were morose and troubled. At times, the paintings seemed to push me away, only to pull me back in as they perplexed me with planes that interrupted lines that interrupted cubes and ultimately required my re-engagement with the piece. This hypnotic, vertiginous effect is exactly what Johnson intended to orchestrate. The paintings presented in this exhibition are not a solution to a problem, for the whole point of the matter is the unresolved nature of the conflict. The tension is not meant to be solved – a truth that ultimately discomforts us in a world where we can fix things with the touch of a button. It reminds us of those dilemmas in life that cannot be easily rectified, much like the hole sitting in the bottom of the
7
Gulf that has been flowing uninterrupted for three months as I write this. The paradox is that while I thought my unease with the earlier images stemmed from their unresolved nature, the satisfaction I find in these latest paintings comes from what I have come to think of as a resolved irresolution. These works demonstrate his maturity as an abstractionist, for the tension is more palpable, smooth, and convincing. The reality of the conflict in an unreal setting creates a panicked and intrigued response in the audience. The man who once painted observations of spaces now paints observations of his own emotions, eliciting emotional responses in the viewer. In these works, Johnson has created a world that is more real than that which many solely figural paintings ever create. In the words of the artist Eugene Delacroix, whose emotional quality Johnson himself attributes as an influence, “Those things which are most real are the illusions I create in my paintings.�
Vara Lyons is a writer who lives and works in St. Louis, Missouri. This essay is one in a series of the gallery’s exhibitions written by fellow gallery artists and friends.
8
9
Afterword by Bruno L. David
10
I
am pleased to present an exhibit of new paintings by Kelley Johnson at the Bruno David Gallery. “Kelley Johnson: Recent Paint-
ings,” includes paintings of complex new abstract landscapes. Since the founding of the David Bruno Gallery, the core mission has been to support the creation of significant new works of art. Kelley Johnson’s remarkable and compelling paintings make him one of the most impressive artists at the gallery. A native of St. Louis, Johnson originally trained in the figurative tradition; his recent paintings move far beyond the classical skills he obtained as an art student in Paris. Completely removed from an earthly environment, the artist’s works present vibrantly, at times disturbingly chaotic worlds of raw energy and emotion. Yet underneath the jarring tones and clashing lines, his work retains a discipline, depth and meticulously impromptu nature; characteristic of figurative conventions. Inspired by the manipulation of space and emotions, Johnson’s canvases present an overall effect of disorder so effectively controlled and manipulated that its thoughtful planning becomes invisible in the process. At their core, Johnson’s current paintings stem from recent personal struggles and inner conflicts. Physically intimidating and engulfing due to their sheer size, this particular set of canvases creates a conflict in its viewers as they observe their own discomfort with the uncertainty of ambiguous spaces and planes that continuously subvert and interrupt created volumes. Indeed, we are left with the sense that we have been transported into Johnson’s inner psyche and unsure of how to resolve the struggle—which, of course, is precisely what the artist intended. Johnson received his B.F.A. from Parsons School of Design, New York and his M.F.A. from the Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Arts at Indiana University. This is his second one-person exhibition with the Bruno David Gallery.
11
12
Checklist & Images of the Exhibition
13
Slow Hum, 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 14
15
Untitled (III), 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 16
17
Untitled (VII), 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 18
19
Untitled (II), 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 20
21
Untitled (I), 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 22
23
Construction to Avoid Drowning, 2010 Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 24
25
Untitled (IIX), 2010
Oil on Canvas 74 x 60 inches (187.96 x 152.40 cm) 26
27
Untitled (VI), 2010
Oil on Canvas 47-1/2 x 38-1/2 inches (120.65 x 97.79 cm) 28
29
Untitled (IV), 2010
Oil on Canvas 47-1/2 x 38-1/2 inches (120.65 x 97.79 cm) 30
31
Untitled (V), 2010
Oil on Canvas 47-1/2 x 38-1/2 inches (120.65 x 97.79 cm) 32
33
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 34
35
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 36
37
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 38
39
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 40
41
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 42
43
Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings at Bruno David Gallery, 2010 (installation view - detail) 44
45
46
Kelley Johnson Born: 1973, Houston, Texas Lives and works in Saint Louis, Missouri
EDUCATION 2001, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. M.F.A. 1999, Parsons School of Design, New York, New York. B.F.A. 1998, Yale Summer School of Art, Painting Fellow, Norfolk, Connecticut SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2010 2007
Bruno David Gallery, Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings, Saint Louis, Missouri Bruno David Gallery, Kelley Johnson: Dreaming, Saint Louis, Missouri
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2003 2002 2001
Recession Rejuvenations, Bruno David Gallery, Saint Louis, MO Overview_09, Bruno David Gallery, Saint Louis, MO NEXT, Art Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, (Bruno David Gallery) Controlled Chaos, Bruno David Gallery, St. Louis, MO OVER_VIEW 08, Bruno David Gallery, Saint Louis, MO Painters from Saint Louis, Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Sedalia, MO On Paper, Bruno David gallery, St. Louis, MO Overview, Bruno David Gallery, Saint Louis, Missouri Inaugural Exhibition, Bruno David Gallery, Saint Louis, MO Once Upon A Time, Greenlease Gallery, Rockhurst University, Kansas City, MO Group Show, Webster University, St. Louis, MO Group Exhibition, Ohr O’Keefe Museum of Art, Biloxi, MS Group Exhibition, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, IL Thesis Show, Indiana University Museum, Bloomington, IN
47
2000 1999 1998
Group Show, S.O.F.A. Gallery, Bloomington, IN Group Show, Parsons School of Design in Paris, Paris, France Group Show, S.O.F.A. Gallery, Bloomington, IN Summer Show, Yale at Norfolk, Norfolk, CT
BIBLIOGRAPHY Yood, James. Lyons, Vara . Cooper, Ivy Baran, Jessica Weant, Nancy K. Stouffer, Lindsey. Miller, Rob. Cooper, Ivy. Bonetti, David. Crone, Tomas. Beall, Hugh. Miller, Rob. Beall, Hugh. Griffin, Bill. Bonetti, David. Sieloff, Alison. Bonetti, David. Murphy, Anne.
48
“Kelley Johnson”, Bruno David Gallery Publications, Catalogue, Essay, 2010 “Kelley Johnson: Recent Paintings”, Bruno David Gallery Publications, Catalogue, Essay, 2010 “Johnson’s work demands attention”, St. Louis Beacon, September 13, 2010 “Recession Rejuvenations”, Riverfront Times, St. Louis, MO, August 25, 2010 “2007 St. Louis Painters”, Review Magazine, Kansas City, 2007 “Kelley Johnson: Dreaming”, Bruno David Gallery Publications, Catalogue, Essay, 2007 “’Over hung’ show or ‘Hung over’ critic?” Saintlouisart, November 17, 2005. “Bruno David Gallery: Inaugural Exhibition”, Riverfront Times, November 9, 2005. “Bruno David Gallery”, St. Louis Post Dispatch, November 9, 2005 “Bruno David to Open on Friday”, 52nd City, October 2005 “The Bruno buzz”, West End Word, October 26, 2005 “Bruno David Gallery: Inaugural Exhibition”, Saintlouisart, October 25, 2005 “Bruno David Gallery: Inaugural Exhibition”, Illusion Junkie, October 25, 2005. Web Video. http://illusionjunkie.blogspot.com/2005/10/bruno-david-inaugural-exhibition.html “Bruno David Gallery: Inaugural Exhibition”, St. Louis Post Dispatch, October 20, 2005 “Grand Grand Center”, Riverfront Times, October 19, 2005 “Gallery musical chairs”, St. Louis Post Dispatch, October 1, 2005 “Art News”, The Healthy Planet, September 2005
ARTISTS Margaret Adams Barry Anderson Dickson Beall Laura Beard Elaine Blatt Martin Brief Lisa K. Blatt Shawn Burkard Bunny Burson Carmon Colangelo
Damon Freed William Griffin Joan Hall Takashi Horisaki Kim Humphries Kelley Johnson Howard Jones (Estate) Chris Kahler Bill Kohn (Estate) Leslie Laskey
Gary Passanise Robert Pettus Daniel Raedeke Chris Rubin de la Borbolla Frank Schwaiger Charles Schwall Christina Shmigel Thomas Sleet Buzz Spector Lindsey Stouffer
Alex Couwenberg Jill Downen Yvette Drury Dubinsky Corey Escoto Beverly Fishman
Sandra Marchewa Peter Marcus Genell Miller Iris Nesher Patricia Olynyk
Cindy Tower Mario Trejo Ken Worley
brunodavidgallery.com