Chair 1935 - 1942

Arthur Johnson made this "Chair" with watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil. It feels so precise, doesn't it? I can see Johnson patiently layering the colors, building up the form of the chair, stroke by stroke. It’s a very quiet kind of labor, an act of slow looking. I find myself wondering, what was he thinking about when he was making it? Was he thinking about the history of this chair, its style, its past owners? Or was he just enjoying the process of rendering its form, the curves, the details, the light and shadow? The legs end in these very decorative feet. They remind me of animal paws. The dark purple cushion invites you to take a seat. Artists are always in conversation with each other across time, picking up threads of ideas, transforming them, and passing them on. Johnson's “Chair” isn't just a depiction of an object; it's an invitation to sit with the act of seeing, of making, of thinking.