Mark Johnston
Biography
Mark Johnston is among those who believe it is still possible to say something meaningful and exciting by applying paint to canvas. Braver still, he chooses to work within the long tradition of landscape painting that has flourished with particular vigour in this country. True, his landscapes are largely abstracted. Yet there is in them the same identification with the spirit of place that permeates the great line of English landscapists, from the Norfolk school through Turner to the St. Ives School, notably Peter Lanyon.
Mark has a lot of respect for the 1950's abstract expressionists, in particular Franz Klein and his 1950-61 black and white's. "These painting contain so much life, movement and compositional strength. The raw brush strokes show good truth to medium." The landscape photography of Andreas Gursky influences Mark with its space, atmosphere and quality of light. Living in Brighton, between the sea and the South Downs, Johnston also paints in Cornwall and sometimes Scotland.
"I put a lot of importance on not over-doing work or making it too photographic, ambiguity is part of what gives them their power. It's the process of painting that is the real buzz. Whether painting mountains or coast, once a painting is under way, I react immediately and instinctively to keep the work alive, conscious of what the paint is doing as well as what I want the paint to do. The end sneaks up on you and all of a sudden the painting has a mystique and soul of its own."
One of the joys of abstracted landscapes is that they combine the highly subjective aesthetic and sensory appeal of pure abstract painting with the emotional appeal of more figurative landscape painting. Here are juxtapositions and gradations of tones to delight the eye, and textures of great subtlety. Here too is a whole world of nature, of hills, mountains, skies, water, meadows, and above all, of light. Little wonder that Johnston finds painting exciting.
"Like walking in the landscape, the process of painting is a pure journey," he says. Looking at what he has brought back from these journeys it is our pleasure to share that excitement. - Paul Tierney 2001