JASPER JOHNS PRINTS
A Master's Lifetime of Bold, Experimental Art
Jasper Johns is one of the first names that come to mind when thinking of the Abstract Expressionist movement and Pop Art. Born in 1930 and raised in South Carolina, the American artist is famous for his experimental depictions of popular symbols such as flags (specifically the US flag) and targets. The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, is hosting the exhibition An Art of Changes: Jasper Johns Prints, 1960-2018 in honor of the artist’s 90th birthday and a career that spans over sixty years.
Johns rose to fame during the 1950s and quickly became one of the most influential figures in contemporary art, a title he continues to hold. The painter, sculptor, and printmaker has had a highly successful career and has received numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011. His works have been considered crucial in the transition between Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art due to his characteristic experimentation with instantly recognizable motifs and their meanings. By choosing popular symbols –“symbols that the mind already knows,” as he puts it– he can explore and analyze the relationship between an image and its link to color, texture, and display.
An Art of Changes: Jasper Johns Prints, 1960-2018, features about 90 prints from the museum’s collection and a small selection of paintings and sculptures to promote a better understanding of the artist’s practice. Although he is best known for his paintings, printmaking is an integral part of his process, as it is a technique that has allowed him to produce multiple copies of his works. Johns made his first print in 1960 (Target, a lithograph) and has since developed more than 400. In 1987, Walker’s curator of prints and drawings, Elizabeth Armstrong, was contacted about a client who wanted to sell a collection of 317 images by Johns. The museum accepted the offer, as it included all the prints the artist had produced and added to 75 the museum possessed. The Walker Art Center is the only public institution with a complete archive of his prints, and it expands as Johns continues to produce. This acquisition would also lead Walker to become one of the leading centers for studying contemporary images.
The exhibition is organized chronologically and in four sections (Signs and Systems, In the Studio, Surfaces, and Traces), which explore how the artist has represented his key motifs throughout the years (these include the American flag, numerals, and the English alphabet). The works exhibited show different aspects of his evolution and experimentation with varying materials, techniques, and subjects. Later on in his career, he began using more personal and auto-biographical imagery.
Joan Rothfuss curates the exhibit. The Walker’s website also provides a guide for teachers and self-guided tours, including information on the artist, his practice and techniques, and topics of discussion (helpful for those who may choose to explore this exhibition from home). The show opened on February 16, 2020, and was scheduled to close in September, but its run has been extended through January 3, 2021.
