1502_0723 Volunteer
In September 2011, my friend, Jan Johnson the metal sculptor, died. He left behind a wealth of art, much of it based on his 1960s stint in Vietnam, that irrevocably changed him. After being discharged he moved to Canada, where I met him in the mid-'80s through a mutual friend.
Fast forward to 2015, when I left the prairie temporarily to dog-sit for the winter on a farm in Sooke, BC. Five minutes from Jan's home, I was ideally positioned to take on an assignment offered by Jan's widow, Mary: to compile a visual catalogue of his life work for the purposes of publishing them in a book. We recruited our longtime friend Pam Woodland as the designer, and Jan's step-daughter Mija Lee did the bulk of the writing. I was given free reign to interpret the pieces as I felt and saw fit. It was a great project.
Jan used all sorts of materials to create his blistering critique of the social and political engineering that leads to war, famine, and mass murder worldwide. In this piece, an old garden rake is transformed into a line of soldiers called upon by their officer to volunteer. We see where the two previous volunteers used to stand; they've disappeared. Next!
Like any three dimensional artwork, this piece could have been - and was - photographed from various angles. It's a lot more interesting than copying paintings, for example, which is a technical exercise and not much more. This project allowed me a lot of space for interpretation. The book is called Irony in Steel and is available from Mary Alice Johnson, PO Box 807, Sooke, BC, V9Z 1H8, Canada. Or contact Mary via email: mary@almsculpture.com.
More samples of his amazing work to come over the next few days...
Photographed in Jan Johnson's studio in Sooke, British Columbia (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2015 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
1502_0723 Volunteer
In September 2011, my friend, Jan Johnson the metal sculptor, died. He left behind a wealth of art, much of it based on his 1960s stint in Vietnam, that irrevocably changed him. After being discharged he moved to Canada, where I met him in the mid-'80s through a mutual friend.
Fast forward to 2015, when I left the prairie temporarily to dog-sit for the winter on a farm in Sooke, BC. Five minutes from Jan's home, I was ideally positioned to take on an assignment offered by Jan's widow, Mary: to compile a visual catalogue of his life work for the purposes of publishing them in a book. We recruited our longtime friend Pam Woodland as the designer, and Jan's step-daughter Mija Lee did the bulk of the writing. I was given free reign to interpret the pieces as I felt and saw fit. It was a great project.
Jan used all sorts of materials to create his blistering critique of the social and political engineering that leads to war, famine, and mass murder worldwide. In this piece, an old garden rake is transformed into a line of soldiers called upon by their officer to volunteer. We see where the two previous volunteers used to stand; they've disappeared. Next!
Like any three dimensional artwork, this piece could have been - and was - photographed from various angles. It's a lot more interesting than copying paintings, for example, which is a technical exercise and not much more. This project allowed me a lot of space for interpretation. The book is called Irony in Steel and is available from Mary Alice Johnson, PO Box 807, Sooke, BC, V9Z 1H8, Canada. Or contact Mary via email: mary@almsculpture.com.
More samples of his amazing work to come over the next few days...
Photographed in Jan Johnson's studio in Sooke, British Columbia (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2015 James R. Page - all rights reserved.