Child Painting

This print is a striking example of Johnson’s portraiture, with her characteristic line work and approach to composition. It is a portrait of the artist’s granddaughter: ‘The print features an ink study of my three-year-old granddaughter on the day that she “assisted” me in the studio. She was helping me to paint primer onto a large sheet of paper that we had taped to the studio floor. She was dressed in a pair of my studio overalls and she sang a paint song as she worked. Her pleasure and concentration as she worked illustrated for me, the special alchemy of painting. It makes time stop and gives us permission to play.’ Claudette Johnson, 2020 - Claudette Johnson, Child Painting – The Hepworth Wakefield Enterprises Ltd.