December Issue 2000
Blue Spiral 1 in Asheville, NC, Presents View of National Parks by Robert Johnson
Robert Johnson's
National Parks of the Northwest will be on view at Blue
Spiral 1 in Asheville, NC, through Dec. 31. The show will include
Johnson's intimate notebook sketches, sophisticated gouache paintings
on paper, and imaginative large scale oil and acrylic paintings
on canvas and wood.
Since 1991, Johnson has received various prestigious grants including the National Endowment for the Arts/Southern Arts Federation Grant that have funded numerous excursions to exotic places in the US and abroad. In his current series, Johnson chronicles the spectacular landscapes of the Northwest United States. While hiking between ranger stations in search of different ecosystems, Johnson would stop to make drawings using lush color and highly intricate patterns to illustrate a world of diversity.
Johnson's sketches describe nuances ranging from the raised markings on the back of a banana slug to the rhythm of repeated trees that appear to dance before your eyes. More specifically Johnson painted and sketched the sheer mass of old growth forest and the mammoth trajectory of Old Faithful Geyser. Johnson's generous focus on everything from the nearly microscopic to the boldly monumental serves to illustrate the complexity inherent in these expansive vistas.
During his treks, Johnson immersed himself in the sanctity of these natural places. His series honoring the National Parks of the Northwest reveals the paradox that these abundant havens are actually rare artifacts from our recent past. In this way, Johnson's paintings are like portals to another time, remnant of an era when the diversity of flora and fauna existed undisturbed by human development, intact and reliant on its own system of balances.
For further information check our NC Commercial Gallery listings or call the gallery at 828/251-0202 or on the web at (http://www.bluespiral1.com).
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