Ian Johnston, Artist and Painter.
Biography
Born: 1949 Gloucester, England
Education Brighton, Pars, Leeds
Lives and works now in Leeds
History
Began working commercially producing artwork for small publishers.
Moved into larger work which would be accepted on its own merits.
Works predominantly in the mediums of oil on canvas and pen and wash on paper.
Recent Exhibitions
2002, 2003 and Forthcoming 2004 The Affordable Art Fair, Battersea,
London, represented by Artco, Leeds
2003, 2004 The Glasgow Art Fair, represented by Artco, Leeds
2003, 2004 Regular Exhibitor at Artco, Leeds
2004 North Street Gallery, Leeds
Statement
" My work concentrates on the human face and interprets its shape, structure and expressions which, although being individual and unique, remain immediately recognisable.
Amongst my influences are the strength, power and structure found in primitive African Sculpture.
One technique I use is that of "sgraffito", where an image
is incised through wet pigment onto a dry diluted pigment. Working in
this way produces a raw, almost sculpted image, which helps to emphasise
the primitive nature of human facial expression yet in a clearly stylized
manner. Unlike conventional painting, sgraffito leaves no margin for
error, and any mistake in execution means the whole work has to be re-done,
since "filling in" or "overpainting" is readily detectable
to the naked eye due to the depth and amount of pigment used. "
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