We did it! Thank you!

We took a chance on holding an in person Taos Studio Tour over Labor Day Weekend, and we pulled it off! A huge thank you to everybody who stopped in, wore a mask and safely kept their distance.

I was able to provide a private viewing for most parties, how special is that!

As an artist, the best thing is to have the chance for people to view my art and discuss it with me, to let me know which pieces are favorites and why. I love it when I can see where my paintings have gone to live!

"Little Adobes" in its new home.

One really special aspect about a studio tour, besides meeting and speaking directly with the artist, is you get to see the newest work along with previous paintings. I often bring some pieces from my personal collection, ones that have been hanging in my house. These are usually some of my strongest pieces, they've gone through my "bedroom assessment test" (more about this next week, stay tuned!) to be 100% sure they are finished. These are the pieces I have held onto in order to learn from.

 

"Out of the Blue", 30" x 30", oil on canvas, sold

It can be bittersweet when they sell. I loved having "Out of the Blue" hanging in my dining area, but I'm always glad if they find a new home, and then I pick another to hang in my house!

This year I hung paintings from my sky series as well as my newest pieces painted during the pandemic. The groups may be different, but you can see the common theme of color running through all of my work when they are viewed together.

 

"Trace of the Sun", 12" x 12", oil on canvas

For the Taos Studio Tour I was teamed up with another artist at a central location in town. Want a glimpse into my actual painting studio where the magic happens? Click here for a video to take you there. 

In this video, I talk about my intent, to have light and depth in my paintings, to have you "sink into my art, and be transported." When you look at one of my paintings, I want you to find your own story. I want you to be able to find something new each time you take a look.

"Walking Through Time", 12" x 12", mixed media on canvas

I talk about my inspiration, how it comes from nature. I want my art to make me feel what I was feeling when I was out on a hike or watching a gorgeous sunset, or standing in the wind as a storm rolls through.

 

I also talk about my process and show some of my new explorations. I start by laying on color. I want lots of layers, they add translucence and luminosity, depth and a richness. I love to add dots and patterns. 

 

Detail from "Find Your Way", 24" x 24", oil on canvas

 

As I progress, the painting takes on a life of its own. I paint intuitively, never knowing where I'll end up, but loving the results.

'Taos Is Art' Banner

More highlights since moving to Taos. For the past three years, I've been honored to have my artwork selected for the 'Taos Is Art' Banner competition to celebrate and acknowledge the living artists of Taos County.

2020 'Taos Is Art' Banner

This year my banner is hanging on the east side of the Taos Plaza.

"After the Storm", 24" x 36", oil on canvas

Here is the full painting for you to see. As the banners are long and vertical, I used a thin slice of this horizontal piece.

This painting sold back in early February, pre-Covid-19, that now seems like a lifetime ago. At the time, I was thrilled to get news of the sale on the same day I got news from the Town of Taos that they had accepted my art for the banner!

Life has now changed dramatically, but know that art is still alive and thriving throughout the world, and more important than ever for our collective well-being.

2019 'Taos Is Art' Banner

Here is my 2019 banner. In 2019, the Taos Arts Council partnered with SOMOS, the literary organization, to create Poetry and Art in Public Places. I was honored to have my piece chosen for the project.

Eighteen Taos poets each selected a single art image from the Banner Project and wrote an Ekphrasis Poem inspired by the piece of art. [Ekphrasis is art inspired by another art form, primarily from painting.] Margery Reading wrote a beautiful poem to pair with my painting.

     "Until That Moment", 24" x 24", oil on canvas                      

Here is the full painting for my 2019 banner. The banners are long and narrow, and I'm primarily painting square, so I used a slice of one of my paintings.

2018 'Taos Is Art' Banner

Here is the full painting used for my 2018 banner.

"Radiance", oil on canvas, 24" x 24"

                     

"Sky Sonatas"

"Sky Sonata XXIV", 10" x 10", oil on linen, Lydia Johnston

I just hung "Sky Sonatas", an exhibit of twenty-eight of my new sky paintings, in Spiral Press Café at Northshire Bookstore, Manchester, VT. Nine are mid to large paintings, and the rest smaller ones.

“I want my paintings to have mystery, to allude to the familiar while remaining wholly ambiguous. I'm not interested in supplying all the details of a specific place. I want there to be more than one interpretation. By hinting at things, I hope to trigger your imagination; I want you, the viewer, to bring some of your own experiences and recollections to the process. This collaboration allows you to connect in a profound way. I want you to sink into my art and be transported.”


"Sky Sonata XV", 10" x 13", oil on linen

Many of the new small oil paintings hanging in the exhibit are not yet up on my website, so I put together a page that shows all of these paintings. Just click HERE to see all twenty-eight paintings in the show. They will be hanging until June 2nd.

The Allure of Ambiguity

I want my paintings to have mystery, to allude to the familiar while remaining wholly ambiguous. I'm not interested in supplying all the details of a specific place. I want there to be more than one interpretation.


"December Light", 18" x 24", oil on linen, Lydia Johnston


By hinting at things, I hope to trigger the viewer's imagination, I want the viewer to bring some of his own experiences and recollections to the process. This collaboration allows the viewer to connect in a profound way. It allows the viewer to sink into the scene and be transported.

"Warm Glow"

"Warm Glow", 18" x 24", oil on linen, Lydia Johnston

Bask in the warm glow of light spreading over the fields and glinting on the treetops towards the end of the day. On this rainy Saturday, I look at this painting and I can feel the sunshine.

New paintings to Lenox Gallery of Fine Art

"Meadow Treasures", 24" x 30", oil on canvas, Lydia Johnston

Today I delivered two new paintings to the Lenox Gallery of Fine Art in Lenox, MA. "Meadow Treasures" is the last of my gem series of meadow paintings, for now. And "Awakening" is my newest large painting in a series of big sky paintings I am working on.


"Awakening", 30" x 40", oil on canvas

Creativity

"Awakening", 30" x 40", oil on canvas, Lydia Johnston

Create: to produce through artistic or imaginative effort

This has been an exciting time for me. I may have been out for four weeks, but now I have emerged bursting with ideas, and am turning out some of my best paintings.

I find it interesting that the definition for "create" speaks of artistic or imaginative "effort". During the first two weeks after my bicycle accident, there was no way I could even consider painting in my studio. I had no energy for anything but the healing process.

Creating takes a certain mind set, it does require "effort". As I began to be up and about, I could make myself do certain tasks, I could read, but there was no way I could make myself create. It's a little frightening to lose that ability when it is normally what you do on a daily basis.

By the fourth week I was able to finally return to my studio. And what a time I have been having. It's as though all kinds of ideas had been incubating while I was healing. The creativity is pouring out of me.

The first uninterrupted day, I painted a full 30" x 40" sky-scape, and except for one minor adjustment, it was all completed in a number of hours. I was completely drained by the end of that day, but exhilarated as well. And the following day I completed another small sky-scape.

I know I cannot sustain this level of output. Normally I hope to complete a painting in a week, and more likely it takes two or more weeks, with sustained effort. So I will revel in this flow of ideas and creativity.

New Paintings delivered to AZ Fine Arts, Wellesley Hills, MA

"Gold and Lavender", 20" x 30", oil on canvas, Lydia Johnston

I just delivered three new paintings to AZ Fine Arts, located in Wellesley Hills, MA, about a half hour west of Boston.


"Soaring", 20" x 30", oil on canvas

All three paintings are in my big sky series. I love working on big sweeping skies, playing with color and the sense of light.


"Evening Glow", 24" x 36", oil on canvas

If you have a chance, stop in to the gallery and see all the new work.

Painting Titles

It's been a while since I posted new work. In part, I don't like putting up new paintings until they have a title, and I haven't been coming up with titles for my new work.

I always feel a title is important, it gives a connection to the piece, it's something to hold onto, a bridge to the viewer. I never like it when I see artwork labeled "Untitled". In addition, I need a way to keep track mentally of my paintings. I do have a numbering system for them, but if I am referencing one, I want a named title.


"____", 20" x 30", oil on canvas, Lydia Johnston

So I am posting here one of my recent paintings, even though it is as yet, untitled. Please feel free to send in any title suggestions. Maybe someone else will come up with a good one before I do.

Setting Sun

"Setting Sun", 30" x 40", oil on canvas, Lydia Johnston


The fall colors just kept deepening and intensifying. This past weekend the sugar maples were glorious. Driving along Mt. Anthony Road I felt I was in a tunnel of color, a magical experience. Already the colors are beginning to fade and winds are blowing the leaves off the trees. Today the air is full of swirling leaves. I'm always amazed at how quickly the colors peak and then begin to fade.

It's the same with sunsets. One moment the sky is infused with intense color, mesmerizing me, and the next it is all draining away as evening comes on. I wonder, was it really as intense as I remember. And so I head into my studio to capture the memory on canvas .