Barbara Johansen Newman
Family Portrait, Acrylics on panel, salvage wood
What are your earliest memories of being artistic? My parents and grandparents were artists and very creative so I cannot recall a time when drawing and making were not a part of my life.
When did art become a pursuit? In my junior year in high school I took myself off the typical college track so I could take art classes. This meant giving up taking chemistry, which I celebrated! I cannot recall exactly why I did this except to say that it was the beginning of the driving force that has been present in my life since. I made it a mission to get into an art program in college. It’s all I wanted to do from then on.
Are you self-taught or formally educated in visual art? I ended up getting a BFA but I can honestly say that except for one wonderful year where my professors modeled what it meant to be real artists, I taught myself to make art. Back then art courses were pretty much hands off. As a result of feeling disappointed in my college experience, I abandoned fine art for a while. I became a puppeteer and fiber artist. That was a refreshing change of pace because the fine craft world was exploding with excitement in the 70s. I felt liberated. I did that for 10 years.
How did you first become involved with CAA? In 2017 I decided to formally abandon a 35 year career in illustration (both editorial and children’s books) to simply paint for myself. As a result I began to look into opportunities to exhibit. That lead me to check out different Calls for Entry, and I came upon CAA. I’m so looking forward to being part of a group of artists again.
Llevo Mis Muchos Amores (I Carry My Many Loves), Acrylics on wood, gold leaf, salvage parts, found objects
In what other ways are you involved in the local art community? For many years I ran a monthly group for illustrators out of my home. Now, I have a studio in an old mill building filled with other artists and we work together on Open Studio events and community outreach. I also work out of my home and meet up often with friends who are artists.
What role do you think the artist plays in society? I think that artists enable others to see the world with eager eyes. We look at people and landscapes and ordinary objects and colors and then communicate our own visions. For example, the way I see the subject of a painting is not the same as the next person, and perhaps I can help that person to see something he/she had not seen before. And in the process of creating, I often see something myself I had not seen before. So I suppose that is the goal: to offer up and share a new and unique experience.
What medium do you currently work in and how did you choose this medium? I work in acrylic paint because I like the ease with which it dries. That may harken back to my years as an illustrator and meeting tight deadlines. But even before then, I preferred working with water media. I mostly paint on wood or hard surfaces. When I work on canvas I prefer to use a canvas tarp and pin it to a hard backing while I paint. I also like embellishing the frame and make the presentation of the painting part of the end product, creating an assemblage.
What is your creative process? Where are you finding ideas for your art these days? Since my work is figurative, and I am a people watcher, it is not hard to find myself going down a particular path inspired by something I have seen or experienced. In that one wonderful year of college art, the department head gave me advice I have lived with since. He told me: “Barbara, work out of your head.” So I always start with my imagination when I begin to map out a painting, even if my end result is a portrait of someone specific. I have been finding that certain themes tend to repeat themselves when I work. I just allow it to play out. I also like telling stories.
How do you choose your subject matter? Is there a reoccurring theme that carries throughout your work? I sometimes have a vague notion of where I am going or what I might like to try painting. But I swear that sometimes it seems as though the subject matter chooses me. Lately I am fascinated by people with animals and also body ink. I think that tattoos especially have been fascinating me because of my many years as an illustrator. Tattoos are illustrations of stories, loves, desires, etc. permanently displayed on the wearer’s body. I find that intriguing.
Louise, In Her Element, Acrylics on wood, salvage parts, found objects
In your opinion, what’s your best/favorite piece you’ve made? This is tough to answer, but I think it has to be my portrait of Frida Kahlo. It has everything I love to do in my art: portraiture, tattoos, and assemblage. I particularly enjoyed learning more about her life than I thought I knew. The tattoos represent her many loves and lovers. My portrait of Louise Nevelson is a close second. I love painting formidable females.
What is one of your artistic goals? I want to paint what I love painting and continue to build my body of work. I love participating in juried shows because I enjoy having my art shown with other artists’ work so I’d like to do more of that. Eventually I’d like to work with a gallery that gets my vision and would enjoy promoting my work, but I have not gone down that road yet. It would have to be a gallery a little out of the ordinary.
What’s your favorite place to see art? While I prefer going to museums and galleries to see work, it’s not always possible. Right now I am enjoying what other artists share on Instagram.
What living artists are you inspired by? My favorite living artists are Red Grooms, David Hockney, and Terry Turrell. Terry is a Seattle artist and we discovered his work while visiting a gallery out west. He is self taught and his work is like magic to me. I love just about everything he does–it touches me in a way that is hard to explain. We got to visit his studio and home. He is an artist in every aspect of his life.
Do you own any art by other artists? We own several pieces by Terry Turrell and a couple by Red Grooms. We also have a collection of fine crafts that dates back to my years doing the ACC shows in New York.We were fortunate to know many of these wonderful craftsmen in the 70s/80s. Much of that work I traded for years ago, but most of it we could not afford then. So now I look for their work on eBay and Etsy.
Do you have any shows coming up? Right now just the CAA Members’ Show. Several other pieces out there in applications, though.
See More Barbara!
Website: www.johansennewman.com
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