Philip Johnson - New Paintings, Summer 2006
Queen Andromeda, 36"x48", Acrylic on Canvas, 2006
"I start out with the terror of the blank canvas, and I make a mark, and then another mark, and then another. I paint out marks; I make new ones; I scrape them off; I assault the canvas and attempt to engage it in some sort of battle, or copulation, or at its height, a personal-shamanistic trance -- a dance."
--Philip Johnson
Astoria, Oregon, April 25th, 2006.
These words from the artist best illustrate what is going on in these incredibly kinetic paintings. Like Pollack and De Kooning in more recent times, and the Chinese calligraphers from hundreds of years ago, these pieces display not only emotion and intesity but are a record of the act of creation at that moment. The motions and rhythms of the artist and the vibrations of his mood are all perfectly transcribed in the swashes and splatter of paint on canvas. Like a battle, or a "dance", Philip Johnson makes "works with a high degree of rorschach-test value."
Untitled III - 20"x16", Acrylic on Canvas, 2006
One cannot help but feel the psychological impact of the art on both the individual and the creator. The organic nature could only have come from human hands, and stands as a test to time in an overly information based and technologically advanced society. Despite such an overstimulated rush of media you can look at paintings such as these and recognize the universal balance of chaos and order that lies beneath it all. The basic and primitive instinct is still intact and it takes artists of this caliber to remind us all of the natural desire we have to be human; to respond to our world with our natural senses in our own unique ways.
Triptych after Francis Bacon (Left panel), 28"x22", Acrylic on Canvas, 2006
"The making of marks goes back a long time. It transcends literature, as what is literature, but a relatively recent invention; a highly refined and codified set of marks which paint pictures in the mind." - Philip Johnson
You can find these and many other of Philip Johnsons works at his web page. The images are much larger and therefore better to notice the detail of these amazing paintings.
Artists Myspace Page
Artists Wesbite
posted by blend77 at 12:50 PM
3 Comments:
Yea I can see why people would make the Pollack and De Kooning connection, but personally it reminds me of post-world war II european art. The brushstrokes are very vicious and seems like they want to slash the canvas rather than create an artwork. That alone creates that feeling of emotionality. You might want to check out some of the european artist like Jean Fautrier. Good Article. I am an studio art/art history major so this stuff intrest me alot.
cool, i am going to try and inject a little bit of artwork each week...
thanks for leaving your thoughts...i will check out Fautrier.
Hello Blend 77--I really admire what you're doing here. If I could make a request...I'd love to see a post on the Hated, since it fits in with the kind of music you're covering (and since it's all out of print and impossible to find). Good luck and thanks.
Post a Comment
<< Home