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EMMETT JOHNS TO RECEIVE
DOOR COUNTY ART LEAGUE
2010
MASTER’S AWARD
AT PUBLIC RECEPTION
FOR OPENING
OF 24TH ANNUAL
JURIED EXHIBIT
Annually, the Door County Art League has the distinct
pleasure of naming the Door County Master Artist. This
year at the opening of the League’s 24th Annual Juried
Exhibit, the very well-known, well-respected, and prolific
artist Emmett Johns will be presented the 2010 award.
Johns’ studio and gallery are on Highway 42 in Fish Creek,
and he also works in a studio in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He draws and paints in a variety of mediums.
The Masters Reception and opening of the Juried Exhibit
will be held on Sunday, September 12th, from 1:00 until
3:00 PM at the Link Gallery, located in the Door Community
Auditorium, 3926 Highway 42, Fish Creek. The public is
invited to peruse League members’ new artwork and meet
the 2010 Master Artist and see some of his favorite pieces.
Hors d’oeuvres will be served, and Steve Lavell will entertain
guests on the classical guitar.
Three Awards of Excellence and six Honorable Mentions will
be awarded to participants of the 24th Annual Juried
Exhibit. 2009 Master Artist Margaret Lockwood, whose
Woodwalk Gallery with its straw-bale studio in a beautiful
1890s revitalized Door County barn is located in Egg Harbor,
and Bonnie Hartmann, Director of the Miller Art Museum in
Sturgeon Bay, will judge the exhibit. A People’s Choice
Award will also be given. The exhibit will remain in the Link
Gallery until Tuesday, October 12th.
The selection of Door County Master Artist is an
overwhelming, yet wonderful, task. To choose those
persons who are to be so designated and inducted into a
group, the likes of whom include Lockwood, Ed Fenendael,
Gerhard Miller, Phil Austin, Jack Anderson, Abe Cohn,
Isabel Beaudoin, and Franne Dickinson, is a tremendous job.
The committee that screens these talented people has
parameters that were set by the League’s Board of Directors
many years ago.
The Master Artist must have publicly recognized talents, a
body of work representing a high level of achievement in his
or her field, and must have contributed significantly to the
arts in Door County through community involvement,
teaching, and/or promoting the arts. Exhibit Chairperson
JoAnne Rosenfeld says, “Emmett’s choice as the 2010 Door
County Master celebrates the creative, productive, and ever-
evolving career of one of Door County’s most well-beloved
artists. His abundant work embodies what defines the best of
Door County art. This year the committee consisted of
David Hackett, Sally Everhardus, Barbara Kenyon, Randy
Rasmussen, and myself, who are elated and privileged to
make this selection.”
Johns was born and raised in Rockford, Illinois. He attended
the American Academy of Art in Chicago for one semester;
then he moved to California where he studied at the Los
Angeles Art Center College of Design and majored in
illustration. In 1968, after graduation, Johns worked as an
illustrator and portrait artist first in New York City, then
Chicago, before moving to New Mexico where he opened his
studio and began working as a fine artist. Since 1973, he has
spent much of the year working in Fish Creek.
Johns has three bodies of work: abstract/contemporary,
portrait/figurative, and landscapes. He says his abstract
impressionism is influenced strongly by Richard
Diebenkorn. He credits the great master Cezanne for having
an impact on his landscape art and says his portrait business
has not only been a way to make money but has given him
the opportunity to meet interesting people. Of portrait
painting, Johns states, “I truly enjoy one-on-one encounters
and, especially, the challenge of doing a one-hour portrait.”
Johns studied with Harry Carmean, a master draughtsman
who had devoted his entire life to studying and teaching the
works of the old masters, at the Los Angeles Art Center
College of Design. Johns says drawing has from the start
been his strength, and he draws nearly every day. His
sketching evolved into journaling, and he has a body of
sketch works lasting nearly 50 years.
Johns’ love of the Door County countryside is so illustrated
in his landscapes that an observer can almost hear the
sounds and smell the aromas of the region. He states, “There
is nothing like being out in nature and allowing yourself to
become completely absorbed with the surroundings.”
Johns’ abstract paintings are a part of a continuous flow of
work; each new piece is influenced by the preceding
painting. His love of jazz has played an important role in his
abstract work, as he admires the freedom of improvisation
and the development of a theme. He says he may stand in
front of an abstract for an hour without making a brush
stroke, then all of a sudden his hand is dancing across the
paper or canvas and the piece is transformed.
Johns, who believes that after more than four decades of
painting his best work is still to come, is passionate about his
painting and drawing and looks forward to the challenges
ahead. When notified by Rosenfeld that he was this year’s
selection, Johns said, “I am tremendously honored to be
chosen the 2010 Door County Master Artist. I don’t really
consider myself a ‘master,’ so I am extremely humbled to be
included with those who preceded me. I am fortunate to live
in such a flourishing arts community as Door County. The
extensive talent surrounding me, along with the beauty of
this place, inspires me. Thank you so much for this award.”
During his illustrious career, Johns has had numerous art
exhibits throughout Wisconsin, Illinois, New Mexico,
Washington, and New York, just to name a few. His art is in
permanent collections in Illinois, Ohio, New Mexico, and
Wisconsin. His work will be shown at Mr. Helsinki’s in Fish
Creek in October and also in the upcoming Miller Art
Museum “Past and Present Group Invitational.” His books
include 711 Life Drawings 2008, Garden Party Drawings, I
Thought You Were the Picture; and his next book will be
Head Drawings. Many of his drawings are in the book Bar
Code.
Nearly 300 members strong, the Door County Art League
was organized in 1986 and incorporated in 1993 for the
purpose of developing active community involvement in the
field of creative arts. Membership is open to artists and all
other persons interested in and supportive of the visual arts
in Door County. Since the first season, the League has
offered a variety of programs to members and guests wishing
to enrich their lives through the knowledge, use, and
enjoyment of art. To learn more about the League, visit
www.doorcountyartleague.org. For more information on the
24th Annual Juried Exhibit and Master’s Presentation,
contact Rosenfeld at 920-559-7530.
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