The Other Art Fair Melbourne #TheOtherArtFairMEL
Well I have had some fantastic news this week. I have been chosen to exhibit my art in the upcoming The Other Art Fair Melbourne.
The Art Fair opens to the public on August 3rd. I have masses of tickets available so contact me at yianni@yiannijohns.com, I will send you a link to redeem your ticket which is going to be valued at $15 per head but if you redeem your entry from me it is free.
Recently I was interviewed by a pretty famous radio producer presenter with the ABC and he asked me these questions. Please read on to learn a little about the Artist, Yianni Johns.
Q. What are the major themes you pursue in your work?
YJ. My work in painting is pretty eclectic covering quite a few genres, from figure drawing, to Pop Surrealism. I paint what I love, usually things I see or collect. I would probably call myself a Documentary Realist. I gather a lot of my inspiration from things I see on the internet. I take ideas I see from the internet and play with those in Photoshop to build my compositions, then I draw those on canvas then paint the paintings from there. It's kind of like a construction, inspiration, planning, designing, drawing and then painting. When you look at a lot of my work there is a story being told so I work on a lot of levels. Every painting has its own history and I am happy to share that with people who are interested.
Q. How did you get interested in your medium and what draws you to it specifically?
YJ. I am currently completing my Master of Arts with Swinburne University in Melbourne and prior to that I completed a BA (Fine Art) with Curtin University in WA. I started my BAFA when I was 50. So all that time before, having many, many exhibitions and solos all over Australia and in Montreal, and New York I was predominantly a self taught artist. For many years I was a guy who would draw, I drew everything in those years. I worked in pencils and pens in monotone palettes. I was frightened of colour until one day in the early 80's I visited an art studio where people were working with oils. It was the smell and the versatility of the oil paint that hooked me. From that day on I have been a one eyed oil painter. Even now when I smell the oil I am drawn to paint.
Q. How has your style and practice changed over the years?
YJ. The renowned and exceptionally talented Australian artist Jeffrey Smart (b.1921 - d.2013) said,
"We all go through our lighthouse phase." Well I started off with pretty scenery type paintings innocent nowhere paintings of lighthouses, cottages in fields, even flowers. I did a lot of painting of Greek villages, well I am half Greek so I can be forgiven. Slowly my art moved from innocent adoration of the humble landscape or village scape to more social commentary in my art. Where a tighter more realistic surreal imagery sums up my most recent style of work. I call the style of those paintings my 'Pseudo Symbolism' works. I am still making these types of paintings featuring, strange people in strange places in love with strange highly manufactured objects. I'm having a go at all those who consume for the sake of it and to elevate their status with their peers. I also work in another style I call 'Strange Abstract Colourfield Portraits.' I paint portraits of famous people (at the moment am open to private portrait commissions right now) but they are painted in such a way as to see them in real life they are blobby abstract versions of somebody. Now this is where the contemporary magic is applied, I get the viewer to get their cell phone out. Switch on their camera in their phone then observe the painting through their phone's screen. Bang, the portraits snap into reality. So the observer finished the portrait via their cell phone, which is the way most people experience their life nowadays, through their cell phones. So that's a little of how I have changed over the decades as a painter.
Q. Can you walk us through your process? Do you begin with a sketch, or do you just jump in? How long do you spend on one work and how do you know when it is finished?
YJ. My style of constructing paintings was answered above, but I am constantly on the lookout for ideas as a painter, it drives my family crazy I think. When we are out I am constantly grabbing images of people, buildings, reflections, shadows, scenes, interiors and people. Everything is new and exciting to my eye, another thing that frustrates those around me. I have idea files where I put pictures from life and the internet and I also write a lot of diary notes about what I am seeing that inspires me. Then I put those together in photoshop. I draw what I make in photoshop onto canvas and then I paint using the photoshop picture as a loose reference. Then the painting will govern where it ends up. My style is not quick so paintings can take a long time between first idea to signing. To me a painting is never really finished, but there is a time that the picture will tell you to stop. I stop there, leave it for a couple of weeks. Then if it needs fixing thats when I fix it, or sign it. Once the painting is signed I don't do anything more to it, it is finished.
Q. If you couldn't be an artist, what would you do?
YJ. I would be a writer. To me writing in a creative way is very close to painting. I would love to be an airline pilot if I couldn't paint or write, or perhaps a radio and TV star. But really I never contemplate not painting so thats a hard question.
Q. Who are some of your favourite artists, and why?
YJ. Wow. There are so many artists I love. But lets kind of stick with modern artists. Edward Hopper, Andy Warhol, Dali, Magritte, Du Champ, Brett Whiteley, Alex Katz, Andrew Wyeth. All these guys have set trends and been leaders in their style of art. I love that and hope to be seen in the same way.
Q. What are some of your favourite experiences as an artist?
YJ. My art has taken me all over the planet with exhibitions in Montreal Canada, Chelsie New York, Beijing China. My art has been electronically projected on to the billboards of Times Square three time since 2012 and also in the Louvre a couple of years back. I spent 2 months in Beijing on a Red Gate residency that was truly exciting. But I think one of the most exciting moments for me as an artist was being awarded an Australia Day Award for my services to Arts and Culture back in 2010. From there I was made an Australia Day Ambassador Artist presenting the Australia Day address to cities all over the country on Australia day. Very exciting stuff. But really the most exciting thing is the next painting.
Q. What was the best advice given to you as an artist?
YJ. Paint the things that inspire you, the things that you love for that moment. Develop a thick skin, don't listen to the critics. And most of all, never, never, never give up.
Q. Do you prefer to work with music or in silence?
YJ. A Bit of both really, but mostly working to music. I have various styles I need at certain times of a paintings evolution. It goes, and in no fixed order from Classical, to 70's Punk, to Blues, Heavy Metal. Then I find I love to put on movies, I don't watch them I listen and sometimes aspects of the film end up in my paintings. I am looking forward to exhibiting in The Other Art Fair Melbourne in August that is music to my senses.
The Art Fair opens to the public on August 3rd. I have masses of tickets available so contact me at yianni@yiannijohns.com, I will send you a link to redeem your ticket which is going to be valued at $15 per head but if you redeem your entry from me it is free.
Recently I was interviewed by a pretty famous radio producer presenter with the ABC and he asked me these questions. Please read on to learn a little about the Artist, Yianni Johns.
Q. What are the major themes you pursue in your work?
YJ. My work in painting is pretty eclectic covering quite a few genres, from figure drawing, to Pop Surrealism. I paint what I love, usually things I see or collect. I would probably call myself a Documentary Realist. I gather a lot of my inspiration from things I see on the internet. I take ideas I see from the internet and play with those in Photoshop to build my compositions, then I draw those on canvas then paint the paintings from there. It's kind of like a construction, inspiration, planning, designing, drawing and then painting. When you look at a lot of my work there is a story being told so I work on a lot of levels. Every painting has its own history and I am happy to share that with people who are interested.
Smart Ed's one Stop Shop Karratha. 36"x 48" oil on canvas.
Q. How did you get interested in your medium and what draws you to it specifically?
YJ. I am currently completing my Master of Arts with Swinburne University in Melbourne and prior to that I completed a BA (Fine Art) with Curtin University in WA. I started my BAFA when I was 50. So all that time before, having many, many exhibitions and solos all over Australia and in Montreal, and New York I was predominantly a self taught artist. For many years I was a guy who would draw, I drew everything in those years. I worked in pencils and pens in monotone palettes. I was frightened of colour until one day in the early 80's I visited an art studio where people were working with oils. It was the smell and the versatility of the oil paint that hooked me. From that day on I have been a one eyed oil painter. Even now when I smell the oil I am drawn to paint.
Q. How has your style and practice changed over the years?
YJ. The renowned and exceptionally talented Australian artist Jeffrey Smart (b.1921 - d.2013) said,
"We all go through our lighthouse phase." Well I started off with pretty scenery type paintings innocent nowhere paintings of lighthouses, cottages in fields, even flowers. I did a lot of painting of Greek villages, well I am half Greek so I can be forgiven. Slowly my art moved from innocent adoration of the humble landscape or village scape to more social commentary in my art. Where a tighter more realistic surreal imagery sums up my most recent style of work. I call the style of those paintings my 'Pseudo Symbolism' works. I am still making these types of paintings featuring, strange people in strange places in love with strange highly manufactured objects. I'm having a go at all those who consume for the sake of it and to elevate their status with their peers. I also work in another style I call 'Strange Abstract Colourfield Portraits.' I paint portraits of famous people (at the moment am open to private portrait commissions right now) but they are painted in such a way as to see them in real life they are blobby abstract versions of somebody. Now this is where the contemporary magic is applied, I get the viewer to get their cell phone out. Switch on their camera in their phone then observe the painting through their phone's screen. Bang, the portraits snap into reality. So the observer finished the portrait via their cell phone, which is the way most people experience their life nowadays, through their cell phones. So that's a little of how I have changed over the decades as a painter.
Tony Abbott
Malcolm Turnbull
Bill Shorten
Donald Trump
These are the portraits you need your phone to complete try it.
Q. Can you walk us through your process? Do you begin with a sketch, or do you just jump in? How long do you spend on one work and how do you know when it is finished?
YJ. My style of constructing paintings was answered above, but I am constantly on the lookout for ideas as a painter, it drives my family crazy I think. When we are out I am constantly grabbing images of people, buildings, reflections, shadows, scenes, interiors and people. Everything is new and exciting to my eye, another thing that frustrates those around me. I have idea files where I put pictures from life and the internet and I also write a lot of diary notes about what I am seeing that inspires me. Then I put those together in photoshop. I draw what I make in photoshop onto canvas and then I paint using the photoshop picture as a loose reference. Then the painting will govern where it ends up. My style is not quick so paintings can take a long time between first idea to signing. To me a painting is never really finished, but there is a time that the picture will tell you to stop. I stop there, leave it for a couple of weeks. Then if it needs fixing thats when I fix it, or sign it. Once the painting is signed I don't do anything more to it, it is finished.
Mao Goes POP Shop until you drop. Oil on linen 150cm x 50cm
inspired by my China residency
Q. If you couldn't be an artist, what would you do?
YJ. I would be a writer. To me writing in a creative way is very close to painting. I would love to be an airline pilot if I couldn't paint or write, or perhaps a radio and TV star. But really I never contemplate not painting so thats a hard question.
Q. Who are some of your favourite artists, and why?
YJ. Wow. There are so many artists I love. But lets kind of stick with modern artists. Edward Hopper, Andy Warhol, Dali, Magritte, Du Champ, Brett Whiteley, Alex Katz, Andrew Wyeth. All these guys have set trends and been leaders in their style of art. I love that and hope to be seen in the same way.
Q. What are some of your favourite experiences as an artist?
YJ. My art has taken me all over the planet with exhibitions in Montreal Canada, Chelsie New York, Beijing China. My art has been electronically projected on to the billboards of Times Square three time since 2012 and also in the Louvre a couple of years back. I spent 2 months in Beijing on a Red Gate residency that was truly exciting. But I think one of the most exciting moments for me as an artist was being awarded an Australia Day Award for my services to Arts and Culture back in 2010. From there I was made an Australia Day Ambassador Artist presenting the Australia Day address to cities all over the country on Australia day. Very exciting stuff. But really the most exciting thing is the next painting.
At my New York exhibition.
This was at my Montreal Exhibition.
Q. What was the best advice given to you as an artist?
YJ. Paint the things that inspire you, the things that you love for that moment. Develop a thick skin, don't listen to the critics. And most of all, never, never, never give up.
Q. Do you prefer to work with music or in silence?
YJ. A Bit of both really, but mostly working to music. I have various styles I need at certain times of a paintings evolution. It goes, and in no fixed order from Classical, to 70's Punk, to Blues, Heavy Metal. Then I find I love to put on movies, I don't watch them I listen and sometimes aspects of the film end up in my paintings. I am looking forward to exhibiting in The Other Art Fair Melbourne in August that is music to my senses.
See my art @
Or my website.
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