““70% about what we know about the world, comes from our eyes – it’s not always valid, but it’s the bulk of the information we know” ”
Artist Statement
My most recent body of work found in the Paintings and Drawings section is me. Identity, masks, perception, confrontation, and one’s response to color are things important about these works. By presenting myself and my blackness, I mask and reveal different emotional states that help make up my identity and its performance due to preconceived notions. How one perceives something to be true based on assumption and confronting issues that get swept under the rug about history and conflicts about race is found in these works. Color is important and relaying various meanings about color and their effect on viewers is a key component as well. I title this recent work Impulse: from a Black Perspective. I believe it observes, dissects and scrutinizes ideas of America’s cultural heritage through one’s personal experiences that informs a collected identity. This body of work communicates my personal feelings, emotions, and outlook on me both internally and externally through figurative works.
Biographical Statement
Curtis Johnson was born and raised in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia. His early life was spent in East Atlanta, while later attending a private high school in the Buckhead area. He received his BA from The University of the South (affectionately known as Sewanee) concentrating in painting and drawing.
After receiving the nickname "Cujo" from his teammates while playing collegiate football, Curtis decided to adopt and embrace the name with its significance of being the first two letters of his first and last name.
Curtis' work has been exhibited nationally at venues in Atlanta, Kansas City, Sewanee, and Washington D.C. Along with drawing and painting, Curtis is a freelance designer with work in logo design and branding for small businesses. He is currently producing a new body of work while living in Memphis, TN.