Kathleen D. Johnson
Kathleen is an artist specializing in oil paintings of Mount Desert Island, where she has been a resident for twenty years. Her work captures the natural beauty intrinsic to the area, often focusing on the abstract structural shapes of boats. She is also recognized for her paintings of fishermen and other workers of the Coast of Maine.
Her work is held in many private collections across the United States.
RESUME
- 1973. Received a full scholarship to attend Unity College at its new art department, founded and headed by Leonard Craig.
- 1974. Won first prize in a competition at Colby College, and was awarded the Marguerite Zorach Scholarship to attend the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture.
- 1975. Attended the Skowhegan School on full scholarship and at the end of the nine-week session was awarded the drawing prize.
- 1976-78. Attended the Kansas City Art Institute on scholarship, studying with Wilbur Niewald and Stanley Lewis in a combination of representational and abstract disciplines.
- 1996. Entered her first juried exhibition and four paintings were chosen by the Union of Maine Visual Artists for their show of Downeast art.
- 1997. Began showing her work at the Argosy Gallery in Bar Harbor, where she has sold over 180 paintings.
- 1997. First solo show, in Portland, Maine, for which she received very good reviews.
- 2001. Painting titled "Mount Desert Island Fishermen" was chosen from among 2118 nationwide entries for the Top 100 Show of the National Arts for the Parks Competition. (www.artsfortheparks.com)
- 2004. Painting chosen for top Mini 100, National Arts for the Parks National Show.
EXHIBITIONS
"The Painting 2" International Juried Art Exhibition
Period Gallery, Omaha, Nebraska. Received the Director's Award
Salon International 2002
International Museum of Contemporary Masters of Fine Art
Greenhouse Gallery, San Antonio, Texas
Heartland Artist's Exhibition 2002. Merriam, Kansas
Oil Painters of America National Show. Hilligoss Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
The Salmagundi Club 25th annual juried art exhibition for non- members
The Salmagundi Club, 47 5th Avenue, New York, New York
Oil Painters of America Eastern Regional Show. Richmond, Virginia
"Small Works " juried show, Carl Little, Juror
The Clark House Gallery, Bangor, Maine
2001 National Arts for the Parks Exhibit, shown in several locations
around the country
The 2003 Member's juried exhibition, the Salmagundi Club
2004 National Arts for the Parks Exhibit, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
The 2004 Member's juried exhibition, the Salmagundi Club
Solo Exhibition, January 2006, The Argosy Gallery in Portland, Maine
Featured in American Art Collector magazine, Jan. 2006, in the "Leading
Ladies" article.
The Acadia Invitational Show, The Argosy Gallery
Featured artist for the month of September 2006 at the Camden Falls
Gallery.
Two person exhibition, "Two Rising Stars", the Argosy Gallery at Portland
ME. featured in "Upcoming Shows", April 2007 addition, American Art
Collector magazine.
GALLERIES
The Argosy Gallery
110 Main St.
Bar Harbor, Maine
www.argosygallery.com
The Camden Falls Gallery
8 Public Landing
Camden, Me.
www.camdenfallsgallery.com
The Clark House Gallery
128 Hammond St.
Bangor, Maine
www.clarkhousegallery.com
MEMBERSHIPS
The Salmagundi Club, 47 5th Ave., New York City
American Women Artists, Saint Jo, Texas
Allied Artists of America
Oil Painters of America
Artist's Biography
As a child Kathleen loved to draw. Teachers in grade school would often comment that they couldn't read her schoolwork because her papers were so covered with elaborate drawings. Her first real encouragement came from her 6th grade teacher, who liked to show her work to everyone who came in the classroom. Her first award was the first prize in the Science class competition for her illustrated report on insects.
Kathleen started to paint seriously at 15 when she attended the Skitikuk School in Orono, Maine. At 17 she was offered a full scholarship to Unity College, where Professor Leonard Craig was starting up a new art department. Mr. Craig provided excellent instruction in abstract principles. At the end of the year her work won first prize at a Colby College competition, the award being a full scholarship to the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture 9-week program. There she studied with Janet Fish, Leland Bell, and John Moore and attended lectures by Alex Katz, Fairfield Porter, Elliot Porter, Alice Neal, and Helen Frankenthaler, among others. At the end of the session she won the drawing competition prize.
She attended the Kansas City Art Institute on scholarship, studying under the direction of Wilbur Niewald and Stanley Lewis in an academic format of life drawing and painting from models. She was blessed with an excellent foundation to develop as an artist.
The process of painting evolved out of her educational background, overlaid by intuitive responses to her environment. Living on Mount Desert Island provides an endless array of subject matter. By spending a lot of time outdoors she saturates her senses with the unique and varied island beauty.
Together with her Jack Russell Terrier, they climb pine laden granite mountains, walk along the rocky seashore, and spend time at the docks watching the fisherman bringing in their catches.
Often when out exploring she uses her camera to shoot reference photos to use for her paintings. Her paintings are based on abstract foundations taken from the photos, as well as her memory and imagination. She doesn't consider the object or subject to be secondary: she allows the abstract aspect and the realistic image to carry equal weight and work together as a whole.
Working strictly in oils, it allows her the most versatile of mediums, capable of producing everything from watercolor-like washes to thick impastos.
Her favorite subjects are usually sculptural in quality, small boats with their water reflections, being a current favorite theme. She is also known for her paintings of the fishermen, dockworkers, and other workers of the seas of Acadia.
