Robert Johnson

Artist Robert Johnson is a visual storyteller whose interests in sacred places and man's connection to the natural world are reflected in his rich works. Johnson spent the first fourteen years of his life in Caracas, Venezuela, where he was deeply affected by the abundant plant and animal life. As an adult he became intrigued with sacred places, such as Mt. Fuji in Japan, where people often visit not only to enjoy nature's beauty, but for spiritual renewal as well.

In his series 8 Views of Mt. Pisgah, permanently installed in D. Hiden Ramsey Library of the University of North Carolina at Asheville, the artist was influenced by these long-standing personal interests, as well as his fascination with three-dimensional medieval altar pieces -- panels depicting inspirational stories that were viewed as intercessors between the everyday world and the spiritual realm.

Rather than making literal depictions of Mt. Pisgah, Johnson says, "I hoped to create a graphic representation of my experiences there. Some of the paintings are quite personal, and all of them reflect the interplay between the place and my thoughts." While Johnson's paintings depict the beauty and peace of "sacred places" such as Mt. Pisgah, he also documents the impact that human beings have had on the land. "I observed that the need for preservation is under constant pressure created by the drive for development," he says. "It saddens me that so many financial and human resources are required simply to maintain these tiny remnants of once great ecosystems."

Johnson, who now resides in North Carolina with his family, earned a bachelor's degree in art at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, and an Masters of Fine Arts in painting from Mills College in Oakland, Calif. As part of the North Carolina Mountain Arts Program, Johnson was for five years a Visiting Artist in the Schools. He has taught at Duke University Continuing Education Program, Roger Williams College (R.I.), Central Piedmont College (N.C.), and Mayland Community College ( N.C.). Johnson has received numerous grants and fellowships, including a N.C. Arts Council Artist Fellowship and Artist Project Grant for the 1997 Mt. Pisgah project. His work has been shown at the N.C. Museum of Art in Raleigh, the Asheville Art Museum, the Morris Museum in Augusta, Ga., and the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem.

Excerpted from Daniels Graphics 1997 calendar: Mountain Tops - Sacred Places

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