The Plains

Barbara L. Johnson

In the black field in the lower right Barbara Johnson has used a pale blue oil pastel to render handwriting-like texture to her color woodcut. Johnson's exploration of Abstract Expressionism began early in her art career, pursuing her art degree as the genre began to dominate the American art world. Further studies on her own while living in Japan cemented her style, as she embraced a muted color palette that borrowed from the natural world and was inspired by the modernism emerging in the Japanese art world.

To print "The Plains" she composes a nearly topographical composition, like the quilted agricultural landscapes of the midwest, perhaps borrowing from her early education in geography at Smith College.