Elaine Johnson

Neither talent nor natural ability drive me to create. I create because I must express. From a deep, unexplainable place, as I was approaching my 40’s, I began exploring color, line and texture with bright, vibrant hues of thick acrylics and paper. The combination of the two fascinated me and invited me into greater and deeper experimentation. A fine tension between fear and courage exists in my work, aware of what I lack and yet the certainty that I must persist. Tending toward exactness and yet finding freedom in using whatever tool (e.g.: bread knife, canning lid, or tissue paper) for effect. My work represents the unseen, the possible, the seemingly insignificant details of creation. Line, form, gradient color…they are examples of the finest, most exquisite essentials of what we’ve been given to enjoy. I appreciate these things and seek to represent them to foster curiosity and surprise. Faith and spirituality are at the crux of my expression, pointing toward something greater and deeper than expected or even hoped for.