Magda Johnson
Meet the Artist
Magda is a self-taught Polish-Canadian acrylic artist who draws her creative inspiration from the peaks and valleys of the North Shore mountains, the tides of the Salish Sea, and the windswept beaches on Vancouver Island.
Growing up in Vancouver B.C., Magda watched her mother play with acrylics and paint local landscapes, all the while influencing her knowledge, skill, and love of art. This exposure created an unconscious assimilation of ideas, knowledge and technical skills which she applies to this very day.
Her most recent works feature notable landscape silhouettes which follow the coastline of Howe Sound, the Sunshine Coast, and Vancouver Island. The light and earthy hues alongside a singular feature colour are often juxtaposed against a darkened landscape. Unlike conventional landscape paintings, the details within Magda’s work are intentionally simplified, pulling the observer towards appreciating the unique form and silhouette of each location.
After deciding on the location and palette, acrylic paints are first diluted then glided onto the canvas forming a thin layer of ground. The ebb and flow of repeated brush strokes gently add and remove paint in the distance of the landscape, allowing depth to come in the form of light and space between paint and canvas. Her use of the palette knife is consistently applied to each painting which defines tree lines, moments of light, and reflections and ripples in the water.
While neutral and monochrome palettes have predominated her work, her recent paintings have depicted an emergence of brighter colours.
Magda currently lives on Vancouver Island, British Columbia with her two sons, husband and furry companion. When she’s not painting, you can find her exploring the island beaches, gathering reference photographs, teaching acrylic painting and paddle boarding along the shores.
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