Ann C. Johnson

I am in my second bloom as an artist. A few years ago I decided to revisit a passion from my childhood and teenage years. That passion was oil painting. I was completely immersed in it whenever I picked up a paintbrush, losing all sense of time and being utterly absorbed by the creative process. I remember it as a joyful, happy experience, pure fun. Would it feel the same all these years later? Beginning again, that familiar feeling was immediate yet even sweeter this time around. My creative muscle hadn’t disappeared – it was only lying dormant within, waiting to be reawakened. And to this second bloom I bring my life’s experience, adding another layer to what I create while working hard to retain that youthful freshness.
There have been challenges, frustration and doubt along this part of my journey, but I’ve never wanted to give up. I’ve had to find my own voice, listen to it and express it in my art, all the while working to silence the critic that exists within. This is where age and experience have been helpful. I have more confidence in what I want to say and how I want to express it through my paintings than I did in my youth. There’s also a sense of urgency as creative ideas flow constantly through my mind and won’t leave me alone until I at least try to express them.

Though at times I feel that “my hand has not yet caught up to my eye” – I heard someone wise once say – with each painting I get closer. I have gone from beginning again to having my paintings hanging in a gallery.

My paintings have won awards, and they hang in private homes across the country. Reigniting my passion for art has given me a new identity as an artist, a new sense of purpose, and a means to share a part of my soul. Those who have responded favorably to my art have understood what I have tried to say, and that is my greatest joy.