Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Artist Nicholas Johnson...........by Joyce Oroz


Artist of the Month for May at the Dragonfly Gallery
is Nicholas Johnson, a very creative young artist, AHA member and family man. Here is Nicholas in his own words.
Traveling Europe earlier in life and seeing so much incredible art inspired me to start drawing, which later led to painting. I love the moment when things go right and the image in your mind is suddenly a reality on the canvas in front of you. It bugs me when I start a piece and get sidetracked. Life happens with some frequency.
Like many children, I drew and painted often growing up. That kind of petered out until my early 20's when I started to feel like doing it again. It's been about 10 years since then.
I tend to use charcoal and pastel pencils often. I think I like being able to use my fingers to spread the medium, layer, and blend. In terms of painting, I worked in oils for about 5 years, then transitioned to acrylics. The Golden brand, diluted with a glaze medium, has been a great alternative to the headache - literally - of turpentine and liquin. Acrylics don't off gas, so no mask for bigger pieces, and the sheen with the glaze is very close to what I was used to with Utrecht oils. It also stretches out the paint and allows for longer drying times.
When I am not painting, I like to rock climb, surf, and ski. The activities are physically challenging and also put me in places with the kind of beautiful landscapes that I like to draw and paint.


I am working on a children's book, with original illustrations, that I hope to publish through FriesenPress. That should be in the works for some time in 2015. The best way to view my artwork is at the Dragonfly Gallery in Aromas, 380 Blohm.
Thank you, Nicholas for sharing your knowledge and feelings about painting. Happy painting!

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