The Java Project is pleased to present Elena Johnston’s new paintings, on view February 29 – March 21 with an opening reception Saturday, February 29, 6 – 9 PM. The exhibition will present new pour paintings by Johnston along with mixed media and collage work revolving around the primary material of paint on raw canvas.
Johnston employs the elements of chance and play in her work. She omits the brush to paint and instead pours cans of house paint on canvas, often tilting the canvas, sharing the part of director with the element of chance. Color is her favorite aspect of painting. She chooses a color palette and pours, allowing to let go of her control and see how the colors interact without her influence. The process is an exploration of color combinations and shapes relying heavily on experimentation and play as a driving force.
Some recent works displayed include the addition of materials commonly used for paintings or other art processes such as beeswax, oil paint, course ground, small shapes of poured small shapes of dried paint, disperse water, colored plaster, ink, and dried pigment. Johnston challenges the use of these materials by employing them in unconventional ways, to add texture and interact with each other in new ways; the result being a mixed media or collage piece.
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About the Artist:
Elena Johnston is an artist and illustrator in Baltimore, MD. She received her BFA in Illustration and MA in Art Education from Maryland Institute, College of Art, with a focus on painting. Her thesis focused on the intersection between contemporary art practices and creative behaviors. She has shown her work nationally and internationally, in addition to curatorial experience. In 2008 she published a compendium on Baltimore Music Poster Art in 2008 entitled, Paper Kingdom. In 2014 she was selected as a Sondheim Semi-Finalist.