Rashid Johnson
God Painting "A New Day"
2023
Oil on linen
182.9 x 152.4 x 4.3 cm / 72 x 60 x 1 5/8 in
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‘God Painting ‘A New Day’’ (2023) is part of a new, highly symbolic and deeply personal body of work Rashid Johnson developed earlier this year in the lead up to an important exhibition at Stockholm’s Moderna Museet. Discussing the origins of this evocative series of paintings, Johnson recalled: ‘I closed my eyes and I was looking up at the sun. It was a warm day. I saw this red behind my eyes and I said to myself, This is incredibly simple: I’m going to call that thing God.’ [1]
A deeply textural composition, ‘God Painting ‘A New Day’’ offers hints of the artist’s multifaceted process. After building up dense layers of red paint, Johnson uses palette knifes and paintbrushes to carve almond shapes across his canvas. Recalling eyes turned on their side, as well as the intersection of two overlapping circles, the motif is a powerful new addition to Johnson’s distinctive iconography and celebrated visual lexicon.
About the artist
Born in Chicago in 1977, Rashid Johnson is among an influential cadre of contemporary American artists whose work employs a wide range of media to explore themes of art history, individual and shared cultural identities, personal narratives, literature, philosophy, materiality, and critical history. After studying in the photography department of the Art Institute of Chicago, Johnson’s practice quickly expanded to embrace a wide range of media—including sculpture, painting, drawing, filmmaking, and installation—yielding a complex multidisciplinary practice that incorporates diverse materials rich with symbolism and personal history.
Learn more
[1] Rashid Johnson quoted in Antwaun Sargent, ‘The anxiety and ecstasy of Rashid Johnson,’ GQ, October 2023
Artwork images © Rashid Johnson. Photo: Sarah Muehlbauer, Stephanie Powell
Portrait © Rashid Johnson. Photo: Daniel Schäfer
