07 May The Nature of Things

Printmaker Eric A. Johnson finds inspiration for his work in many places—music, positive and negative life experiences and memories and even sometimes news events. “The Nature of Things,” his exhibit reflects that wide range of imagery.

“The Nature of Things,” opened Wednesday, May 2 and will continue through June 3. A reception to meet the artist is set for Friday, May 18 from 5 to 7 p.m. 

Since his childhood on a farm in eastern North Dakota, Eric Johnson has been driven by the desire to capture the world around him—the vast prairies, sparse but towering tree lines, pastures full of livestock. He says the main focus in his work has been conceptualizing his personal experience into pieces the viewer can relate to, regardless of their background or experience. The goal of his work has been “to provide an escape into a feeling of wonder and miracle from a world that is often full of misery, negative happenstance, and mundane tasks.”

The original prints included in “The Nature of Things” represent a span of about five years of work. In some cases he used sketches or photographs as a starting point for the images, in others he explored “automatism” to draw directly onto the blocks. Some imnages started with no drawing at all—he just started printing. Johnson uses a printmaking technique developed by Pablo Picasso in the 1950s that uses one carved block to create a multicolored print instead of using one block for each color. Much of Johnson’s work comes from his exploration of different ways of working with the reduction relief print process. 

A prolific artist, Johnson has created well over 180 prints and exhibited in numerous regional and national exhibitions. He says he likes to switch back and forth between abstraction and realism “to keep myself interested.” Johnson’s unique use of color has been described as “bright and emotionally expressive.” His lines are said to have the ability to render buildings and streets into more organic forms.

Johnson earned his degree in art at North Dakota State University and continued his studies at the University of North Dakota’s Master of Fine Arts program. He has served as coordinator for the North Dakota Governor’s School’s Visual Arts program and is a current member of Fargo-Moorhead Visual Artists. Currently he is an adjunct instructor of art at Minnesota State Community and Technical Collage (Detroit Lakes, Moorhead and Wadena) and Mayville State University, Mayville, ND.

Johnson, who lives near Fargo, ND, continues to create and exhibit new work and plans to establish his own printmaking studio (Big Oak Press) near the home.