Jane Johnson

My love of art started at an early age from painting in oil and drawing. For many years I worked in oil painting landscapes before I discovered my love of mixed media abstracts in a workshop. My work is now process driven, mixed media paintings that are built as much as painted. I start with a loose layer of color in acrylic, add texture, add collage, draw into the work and then repeat that process over and over. I allow the layers to build and reveal images to me directing me where to go with the painting. The images are either abstract, figurative or floral but they are all created in exactly the same process. When a painting is complete it has somewhere between 25 to 40 layers of paint, and collage.

As the surface builds I will take photos of the work, studying the value changes and also finding what story the canvas is trying to reveal. Once the image is starting to emerge it is my job to hone the many layers of texture, color, and pattern into one cohesive painting. I want my viewer to be pulled into the painting to see the depth and complexity but also to step back and enjoy the final image as well. For paintings like my geisha series, each piece has many layers of collage and drawing making the underlying image v...

BFA, Stratford College, Danville, VA
Studied abstract painting at the Art League in Alexandria, VA.

• Waiting, All Media Membership Show, The Art League, Alexandria, VA January 2013
• Color: Bold & Vibrant, Artspace, Herndon, VA, Dec 2012,- Jan 2013 Three Abstract Artists, - Andrea Cybck, Mary Ellen Mogee, M. Jane Johnson
• Seduction, Color Sphere, The Art League, Alexandria, VA Oct 2012
• Solo Show, Vastu DC Gallery, Washington, DC Sept 23 – Nov 18, 2012
• Multiple Pieces, Mixology, Raw Artists, Washington, DC July 2012
• City Hussle, All Media Show, The Art League, Wasthington, DC June 2012
• Abstract Collective, Foundry Gallery, Washington, DC July 2012, Collection of work from Marsha Staiger’s Class
• Artomatic, Arlington, VA, May-June 2012, Open Show
• Spring’s Around the Corner, Spring Emerging, The Year of the Dragon, March Madness, Target Gallery, Alexandria, VA
• Patron’s Show 2012, The Art League, Alexandria, VA
• What Autumn Brings, Small Works Show, Nov 2011, The Art League Gallery, Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA
• Provence in Arlington, Virginia Creekside, CityScape, TART Show, Vienna Arts Society, Nov 2011, Vienna, VA
• Old Souls, Dai De Los Muertos, Installation, Torpedo Factory Art Center, Oct 2011, Alexandria, VA
• Sumptuous Color, Twist and Turns, Cherry Delight, Sept 2011, Group Exhibition/A Cla...