JOHNSON/BENTLY

The exhibition opens on Thursday, October 5, during the first El Paseo Artwalk of the season,

from 5:00-9:00 p.m.

Artist Eric C. Johnson will be in attendance.

Our new season opens with the sophisticated and elegant work of two well-established artists, who are both exhibiting for the first time at the Eleonore Austerer Gallery.

Eric C. Johnson’s intricate creations are made of handmade paper combined with aluminum, sometimes wood, then painted with acrylic. His use of artistically engineered mixed media takes the viewer through a journey of beautiful and distinctive fusions, as the dramatic texture, color and depth search the infinite places of the imagination.

Born on Long Island, Johnson has lived nearly 30 years in California, including Santa Cruz and Sausalito, where he spearheaded a giant centennial mural. (He created another important mural for the San Jose Convention Center.) The artist has received numerous awards over the past three decades, and his work hangs in many prestigious public and private collections, including those of Silicon Systems, Royal Viking, Nikko Hotels and singer Maria Muldaur. Eric moved to the desert in 2000 and became a well-known artist on El Paseo at the Tre Contemporary Gallery, winning a large and loyal following of collectors.

Michael Bentley’s inspiration stems from nature, having spent much time in wilderness areas. His need for solitude, the comfort in silence, has always been important. This connection to the earth led to the world of art, and his career began with works of wildlife done with a modern perspective. Later works, like those on display in our show, followed a natural progression into abstract paintings rooted in nature.

Bentley was born and educated in Wisconsin, and he now resides in Santa Fe. The artist has exhibited widely across the country, including the Brooklyn Museum of Art, whose curator declared: “The serenity of Michael Bentley’s artwork speaks about the artist’s eternal fascination with the elements of nature and the vast spaces of the American landscape.”