Aaron Johnson’s paintings vibrate with ethereal figures that dissolve into hazes of disembodied color, juicy luminosity, and radiant blurs. His fluid approach to painting is rooted in the tradition of Color Field painting, working on the floor staining raw canvas with washes of color, allowing spontaneity and unpredictability to drive the compositions. Allowing the paint to flow freely, the process connects with ideas of cosmic and natural forces, and the interconnectedness of all things. His spiritlike figures are in turns comical, angelic, grotesque, and ghostly. Romantic moments reveal embracing, starry-eyed lovers who melt into each other, combine energies, and meld into a psychedelic nonduality. The dreamy landscapes seem to suggest life on another planet, or in another dimension, abundant with strange magic. 

Aaron Johnson lives and works in Brooklyn, and holds an MFA from Hunter College, NYC, 2005.  His work is in permanent collections including The Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Weisman Foundation, Los Angeles; and Coleccion Solo, Madrid. His work has been included in museum exhibitions at The Museum of Modern Art, Mass MoCA, and The Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art.  His work has been exhibited at galleries internationally, including Almine Rech, Brussels, Paris, and Shanghai; Ross + Kramer Gallery, NY; Stux Gallery, NY; Marlborough Gallery, NY; Over The Influence, LA; Gana Art, Seoul, Korea; AishoNanzuka, Hong Kong; Gallery Poulsen, Copenhagen; and Gallery Brandstrup, Oslo. He is the recipient of awards including The MacDowell Colony Fellowship, The Yaddo residency, and The Marie Walsh Sharpe Space Program residency.  Johnson's work has been reviewed in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Huffington Post, The Village Voice, Art News, and ArtForum, and Vice.  

johnson.aaron@yahoo.com