William H. Johnson
(1901-1970) was one of the great American artists of the 20th century.
Known primarily for his majestic Scandinavian landscapes and his witty and
poignant scenes
of African American daily life, Johnson has made an indelible impact on American
art. Yet he
is one of those rare artists whose influence can be felt beyond his art, for
his life story has
elements of a purely American drama which inspires and encourages anyone familiar
with it.
Johnson, an African American from the rural South, overcame poverty, racial
prejudice and
a grade-school education to become one of the country's leading artists. Through
the force
of his personality and with a steadfast belief in himself, Johnson created
an art entirely his
own, original and fresh.
Johnson left
his native South Carolina in 1918 to study at the National Academy of Design
in New York. Although he was acknowledged as the most talented artist in his
class of 1926,
he was passed over for a traveling scholarship, most likely because of his
race. Rather than
see Johnson flounder in the United States, his teacher, Charles Hawthorne,
gave Johnson
$1000 so that Johnson could travel to Europe. This act of faith and generosity
was pivotal in
Johnson's life, for it provided the seed from which his career flourished.
Johnson remained
in Europe, mainly in Denmark and Norway, for twelve years, more than half
of his working life,
during which time he created hundreds of works, exhibited widely and established
a strong
reputation. He returned to New York in 1938 with his Danish wife, artist Holcha
Krake, where
he continued to paint and exhibit. After Holcha's untimely death in 1944 and
with the end of
World War II, Johnson returned to Europe. Falling ill in Norway, the artist
was returned to the
United States in 1947 and spent the rest of his life at the Central Islip
State Hospital. This
is merely the brief summary of a life marked by great happiness and great
tragedy, and it
is this life–Johnson's persistence, talent and achievement–which
has been the guiding light
behind the formation of the William H. Johnson Foundation for the Arts.
To read more about William H. Johnson, please consult the following books:
Turner, Steve
and Victoria Dailey, WILLIAM H. JOHNSON: TRUTH BE TOLD.
Los Angeles, 1998.
Powell, Richard
J. HOMECOMING: THE ART AND LIFE OF WILLIAM H. JOHNSON.
Washington, 1991.