Skip to main content

Lester Johnson Mixed Media

American, 1919-2010

A New York artist, known as a second-generation Abstract Expressionist, Lester Johnson was born to a large Lutheran family in Minneapolis. He studied at the Minneapolis School of Art and the St. Paul Art School. There, he was introduced to Hans Hofmann's teaching approach, particularly the push and pull effects of form and color by St. Paul teachers Alexander Masley and Cameron Booth, both of whom had studied with Hofmann in Munich. After further study at the Chicago Art Institute, Johnson moved to New York City in 1947 and became one of the first downtown loft-dwellers. He shared a lower East Side studio with Larry Rivers and attended some of Hofmann's New York classes. Rents were cheap, but Johnson was broke much of the time as he tried to support his painting through a variety of part-time jobs, including teaching art. In 1950, he and realist figurative painter Philip Pearlstein shared studio space. Lester's wife, Jo, had introduced the two artists at a time when she and Pearlstein were studying art history at New York University.

Johnson's various studios, on the Bowery and elsewhere, were always one flight up with a view of Manhattan's active street life. No wonder, for over 50 years, street scenes have been a dominant part of his art. Johnson adopted the working techniques of action painting, which meant he used a great deal of paint. A tube of oil paint might be expended in seconds as he, like Pollock, physically projected himself into the work. The images that Johnson produced were not decorative, but stubbornly confrontational, oversize, brooding, thickly encrusted, scarred surfaces that were alive with recognizable objects and figures. Even today, few realize how radical it was for Johnson to depict a recognizable subject in an adamantly pro-abstract-expressionist climate. Sculptor George Segal recalled, "The Abstract Expressionists were legislating any reference to the physical world totally out of art. This was outrageous to us." The rebellion came naturally to Lester Johnson, and he remained tenaciously outside the mainstream. Nonetheless, he produced a body of work that influenced several generations of younger painters and confounded an art establishment in need of neat categorization. He remains one of the few painters whose work holds significance for both abstract and figurative artists. Johnson's animated men and women, with all their nervous energy, yield themselves only gradually to analysis and will no doubt be reinterpreted for many years to come.

to
1
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
39
288
271
149
149
1
1
Artist: Lester Johnson
3 Crouching Figures #1

3 Crouching Figures #1

By Lester Johnson

Located in New York, NY

Ink and spray enamel on paper. Signed "Lester Johnson" and dated "1968" lower right recto. Provenance: Martha Jackson Gallery

Category

1960s Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Ink, Spray Paint

Related Items
A La Rue - Original Abstract Color Drenched Figurative Protest Inspired Artwork
A La Rue - Original Abstract Color Drenched Figurative Protest Inspired Artwork

A La Rue - Original Abstract Color Drenched Figurative Protest Inspired Artwork

By Fabio Coruzzi

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Italian artist Fabio Coruzzi merges painting and photography into one imaginative image that offers a new outlook on an otherwise ordinary urban scene. His artworks represent an auth...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Oil Pastel, Acrylic, Graphite, Ink, Spray Paint

Last Shot - Vintage Inspired Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Painting on Paper
Last Shot - Vintage Inspired Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Painting on Paper

Last Shot - Vintage Inspired Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Painting on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Permanent Marker, Spray Paint

Ciao Mamma 2 - Original Abstract Figurative Color Drenched Mixed Media Artwork
Ciao Mamma 2 - Original Abstract Figurative Color Drenched Mixed Media Artwork

Ciao Mamma 2 - Original Abstract Figurative Color Drenched Mixed Media Artwork

By Fabio Coruzzi

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Italian artist Fabio Coruzzi merges painting and photography into one imaginative image that offers a new outlook on an otherwise ordinary urban scene. His artworks represent an auth...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Acrylic, Graphite, Spray Paint

Lover 2 - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper
Lover 2 - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Lover 2 - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

Lover (3/14) - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper
Lover (3/14) - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Lover (3/14) - Figurative Pink Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

Revenge - Playful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper
Revenge - Playful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Revenge - Playful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

Love Hurts - Colorful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper
Love Hurts - Colorful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Love Hurts - Colorful Figurative Pin Up Cowgirl Western Mixed Media Art on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Permanent Marker

"Make Believer (V3)", Hand cut stencil, acrylic, aerosol
"Make Believer (V3)", Hand cut stencil, acrylic, aerosol

"Make Believer (V3)", Hand cut stencil, acrylic, aerosol

By Mando Marie (seeyouthroughit)

Located in Philadelphia, PA

"Make Believer (V3)" is a one-of-a-kind original work by Amanda Marie (Mando), created using acrylic and aerosol on paper. The piece measures 19.75 × 15.75 inches and is pencil signe...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Spray Paint, Acrylic

pop art contemporary President currency figurative color pop mixed media framed
pop art contemporary President currency figurative color pop mixed media framed

pop art contemporary President currency figurative color pop mixed media framed

Located in New York, NY

This is a 1/1 original currency with wood cutout framed - It's all hand done with spray paint and acrylic and pencil on currency, framed with non glare glass. TBOY is a British a...

Category

2010s Pop Art Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Resin, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Archival Paper

Lover 5 - Original Pink Figurative Cowgirl Pop Art Painting on Paper
Lover 5 - Original Pink Figurative Cowgirl Pop Art Painting on Paper

Lover 5 - Original Pink Figurative Cowgirl Pop Art Painting on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Other Medium

The Fan 2020, Mixed Media, Acrylic, oil stick, Metallic spray paint on canvas
The Fan 2020, Mixed Media, Acrylic, oil stick, Metallic spray paint on canvas

The Fan 2020, Mixed Media, Acrylic, oil stick, Metallic spray paint on canvas

By Ceravolo

Located in Southampton, NY

The art of Ceravolo created a Buzz when he was commissioned to create five large scale paintings of Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Neil Young, Frank Zappa and Hall and Oates for the...

Category

2010s Pop Art Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Archival Ink

Bomber Babe (1/2) - Colorful Figurative Cowgirl Pin-up Inspired Artwork on Paper
Bomber Babe (1/2) - Colorful Figurative Cowgirl Pin-up Inspired Artwork on Paper

Bomber Babe (1/2) - Colorful Figurative Cowgirl Pin-up Inspired Artwork on Paper

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Jesse’s imagery often merges playful and gritty elements, blending floral patterns, vintage-inspired designs, and bold outlines with a touch of whimsy. His artwork exudes a sense of ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Lester Johnson Mixed Media

Materials

Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic, Other Medium

Lester Johnson mixed media for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Lester Johnson mixed media available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Lester Johnson in ink, paint, paper and more. Not every interior allows for large Lester Johnson mixed media, so small editions measuring 28 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Purvis Young, David Morico, and Jane Maxwell. Lester Johnson mixed media prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $7,200 and tops out at $7,200, while the average work can sell for $7,200.