An exhibition of recent drawings and paintings by Richmond artist Ron Johnson entitled “Of the Edge” will be on view at Mary Baldwin University’s Hunt Gallery from November 8–December 3, 2010.
“Of the Edge” will feature Johnson’s signature abstract drawings and paintings that are both graceful and unconventional. The work is accessible at many levels, yet critically it is grounded in issues of space, perception, and construction in ways that constitute a kind of postmodernist formalism. It embraces the paradox of relaxed necessity, gracefully extending the impetus and eccentricities of beauty. Johnson says the following about his approach to the work: “I grew up believing that the moon was following me. At some point I realized that it was only when I moved that the moon would move. Its movement was not an illusion anymore. Its pursuit was a fact. Later, I discovered that the moon was actually in motion, as was the earth. The difference was that the moon moved more slowly than the earth, which explains why it was in a different position every night. The moon was, in fact, constantly following me. This relationship became for me a metaphor of the questioning of situations and of how and why I relate to objects and placements.”
Born in Columbus, Ohio, 1968, Johnson received a BFA in Painting and Drawing from Ohio State University in 1999. He earned an MFA in Painting and Printmaking in 2003 from the School of the Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University. Since 2003, he has been an assistant professor and the administrative director for the Painting and Printmaking Department in The School of the Arts at VCU. Johnson’s work has been featured in a number of solo, two-person, and group exhibitions in a variety of venues in the United States and France, including Reynolds Gallery (Richmond), K Saari Gallery (Steamboat, CO), Gallery V (Columbus, OH), Galerie Pitch (Paris, France), Kim Foster Gallery (New York, NY), and the McLean Project for the Arts (McLean, VA), among many others. His work is represented by Reynolds Gallery in Richmond, and it is in numerous public, private, and corporate collections.
A reception will be held for the artist on Monday, November 8, from 4:30–6:00 p.m. in Hunt Gallery. The public is invited to attend. Hunt Gallery is dedicated to the exhibition of contemporary work in all media by regionally and nationally recognized artists. The Gallery is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. during the College’s academic year.