Sarah Anne Johnson: WONDERLAND

The work of Sarah Anne Johnson (b. 1976 Winnipeg, Canada) playfully, but pointedly bridges the real and the imagined; factual and fictive; lived and desired. She works from a bravely personal perspective that reflects her growing concerns for the world, combined with the pursuit of a utopian place that remains tantalizingly out of reach. At every step Johnson attempts to nudge reality closer to her ideals, supplementing quixotic photographs with humble dioramas, Sculpey figurines, painterly interludes, handcrafted doll-houses and a dizzying array of modifications performed upon the photograph itself. As a whole, WONDERLAND presents the first opportunity to trace the continuity and inspiring evolution of this artist’s practice.

Curated by: Steven Matijcio, Curator, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati

WONDERLAND: Sarah Anne Johnson 2002 – 2014 hardcover catalog now available for purchase.

Asleep in the Forest, 2012, Multi media installation
Courtesy of the Artist

Kissing Gold, 2013, Digital chromogenic print with gold leaf, 16 x 20 inches
Courtesy of The Collection of John & Amy Phelan

Nadine, 2005, Chromogenic print, 17 x 15 inches
Courtesy of the Artist

Volunteer, 2007,Gelatin silver print, 35 x 29 inches
Courtesy of the National Gallery of Canada

Exhibition dates: February 6 – May 3, 2015

Press Release -Sarah Anne Johnson – WONDERLAND Mid-Career Survey 2002-2014

Sarah Anne Johnson: WONDERLAND is made possible by PNC Bank; GlaxoSmithKline; Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina; Newmark Grubb Knight Frank; First Tennessee Bank; Hobby Properties; Lenovo; Summit Hospitality Group, Ltd.; Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc.; TD Bank; Parker Poe; Belk, Inc.; Hodge Kittrell Sotheby’s International Realty; The Raleigh Architecture Company; PMC Commercial Interiors; The Umstead Hotel and Spa; Research Triangle Park; Glover Printing Inc.; Consulate General of Canada in Atlanta; Arts Access; United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake County; North Carolina Arts Council.

Lenders:
National Gallery of Canada; Art Gallery of Ontario; Julie Saul Gallery; The Collection of John & Amy Phelan; TD Bank Group; Stephen Bulger Gallery; Cirque du Soleil; Brenda Hebert and Brent Lisowski, Toronto, ON; Collection of Mary Dailey and Paul Desmarais III; Collection of Allen Thomas, Jr., Wilson, NC; Collection of Lawrence Wheeler and Donald Doskey; Sarah Anne Johnson.

CAM’s educational and community programs are funded in part by the Goodnight Educational Foundation, The Grable Foundation, the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust and the United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County. CAM’s Museum Access for Kids program is funded in part by a work contract with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Special thanks to the AJ Fletcher Foundation; AV Metro; Celito; CE Rental; CITRIX; Clearscapes; C.T. Wilson Construction; Design Story Works; Joseph Rafferty Photography; McConnell Studios; the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources; Pix4Biz; Raleigh Little Theatre; Ross Lampe; Ruocchio Designs; Surevest Insurance Group; Themeworks; CAM/now; The Betty Eichenberger Adams Society.

With Gratitude
The College of Design at North Carolina State University, Marvin J. Malecha, FAIA, Dean.