David Johns
Encyclopedia
David Johns is a Dine' painter from the Seba Dalkai, Arizona, United States.
to live, and told him many of the stories that explain how the Navajo came to be and where his parents clans originated. David received formal training in fine arts from Northern Arizona University
, earning a Bachelor's Degree in 1982. In 1996, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Humane Letters from Northern Arizona University.
, and he started selling portraits and landscapes while still in high school. His work combines his formal training with the traditional teachings he learned as a child and the Navajo philosophy of life by which he lives. The symmetry of David's paintings reflect this harmony and balance; the colors and textures he creates reflect the beauty of the land from which he comes. His abstract paintings capture life's subtle phenomena such as the sunlight at different times of the day or the emotions brought by each of the four seasons.
In 1987, David was approached by long-time mentor Lovena Ohl and Albert Wareing to paint a mural on the dome of Concord Place. The mural covered thirty-six feet in diameter and rose 50 feet in the air, and took 18 months to paint. The mural depicts native peoples in all four directions, presenting indigenous designs and symbols, and portraits of great leaders such as Crazy Horse
and Quanah Parker
. Noted author N. Scott Momaday
wrote of his work at Concord Place, "David Johns is a seer, and he comes very honestly by that gift. In his remarkable artwork, he enables us to see as well. His gift becomes our gift. Here is the essential spirit of creation."
Beginning in 1976, David's work has been exhibited at gallery shows all over the world, with many solo exhibitions including Navajo Tribal Museum, Window Rock, Arizona
(1977); C.G. Rein Galleries, Santa Fe, New Mexico
(1984); The Concord Place, Phoenix, Arizona
(1987); Millicent Rogers Museum, Taos, New Mexico
(1993); Palais de Nations, United Nations
, Geneva, Switzerland (1999); and the Lanning Gallery, Sedona, Arizona
(2006).
David is the Vice President of the Diné Hataałii Association, an organization of Navajo Medicine Men and Women.
Background
He was born in Winslow, Arizona. As a child, David spent many hours with his grandmother herding sheep through their land. During these years, she passed on to David the teachings her grandparents had given to her. She taught him how to respect and care for the land, plants and animals who enable the NavajoNavajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
to live, and told him many of the stories that explain how the Navajo came to be and where his parents clans originated. David received formal training in fine arts from Northern Arizona University
Northern Arizona University
Northern Arizona University is a public university located in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. It is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and has 39 satellite campuses in the state of Arizona. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees.As of...
, earning a Bachelor's Degree in 1982. In 1996, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Humane Letters from Northern Arizona University.
Artwork
By the time he was five years old, David viewed the world through the eyes of an artistArtist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, and he started selling portraits and landscapes while still in high school. His work combines his formal training with the traditional teachings he learned as a child and the Navajo philosophy of life by which he lives. The symmetry of David's paintings reflect this harmony and balance; the colors and textures he creates reflect the beauty of the land from which he comes. His abstract paintings capture life's subtle phenomena such as the sunlight at different times of the day or the emotions brought by each of the four seasons.
In 1987, David was approached by long-time mentor Lovena Ohl and Albert Wareing to paint a mural on the dome of Concord Place. The mural covered thirty-six feet in diameter and rose 50 feet in the air, and took 18 months to paint. The mural depicts native peoples in all four directions, presenting indigenous designs and symbols, and portraits of great leaders such as Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse was a Native American war leader of the Oglala Lakota. He took up arms against the U.S...
and Quanah Parker
Quanah Parker
Quanah Parker was a Comanche chief, a leader in the Native American Church, and the last leader of the powerful Quahadi band before they surrendered their battle of the Great Plains and went to a reservation in Indian Territory...
. Noted author N. Scott Momaday
N. Scott Momaday
Navarre Scott Momaday is a Kiowa-Cherokee Pulitzer Prize-winning writer from Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Arizona.-Background:...
wrote of his work at Concord Place, "David Johns is a seer, and he comes very honestly by that gift. In his remarkable artwork, he enables us to see as well. His gift becomes our gift. Here is the essential spirit of creation."
Beginning in 1976, David's work has been exhibited at gallery shows all over the world, with many solo exhibitions including Navajo Tribal Museum, Window Rock, Arizona
Window Rock, Arizona
Window Rock is the seat of government and capital of the Navajo Nation, the largest territory of a sovereign Native American nation in North America. Window Rock contains the Navajo Nation Council, the Navajo Nation Zoological and Botanical Park, as well as the Navajo Nation World War II Memorial...
(1977); C.G. Rein Galleries, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
(1984); The Concord Place, Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
(1987); Millicent Rogers Museum, Taos, New Mexico
Taos, New Mexico
Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico, incorporated in 1934. As of the 2000 census, its population was 4,700. Other nearby communities include Ranchos de Taos, Cañon, Taos Canyon, Ranchitos, and El Prado. The town is close to Taos Pueblo, the Native American...
(1993); Palais de Nations, United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, Geneva, Switzerland (1999); and the Lanning Gallery, Sedona, Arizona
Sedona, Arizona
Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona...
(2006).
David is the Vice President of the Diné Hataałii Association, an organization of Navajo Medicine Men and Women.
External links
- David Johns, AskArt
- David Johns, Lannin Gallery