The Art League of Long Island welcomes the addition of teaching artist M. Scott Johnson to its roster of faculty members.
New York sculptor M. Scott Johnson was born Oct. 28, 1968 in Inkster, Mich., a poor but proud, African-American suburb of Detroit.
Having always been fascinated with the natural world, Scott said, he began his college education studying both geology and geography.
Eventually, Johnson was introduced to cultural anthropology as a student with African-American anthropologist, Dr. Warren Perry.
Perry was influential in helping Scott to become a participant in Operation Crossroads Africa, serving as a member of its first group to enter post-apartheid South Africa and Zimbabwe in 1994.
Scott’s education as a sculptor began in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
While there he studied traditional and contemporary stone sculpting under the tutelage of the local artists who occupied the endless alleyways of the city.
Johnson’s greatest opportunity came when he was invited to apprentice (1996-1999) with master sculptor, national hero and elder statesman of Zimbabwe stone sculpture Nicholas Mukomberanwa (1940-2002).
Under Mukomberanwa, Johnson explored more than just the techniques of sculpting, it became a period of cultural rediscovery.
In describing his experience, Scott said, “Mukomberawa helped me to develop a metaphysical relationship in my work, this helped me reevaluate my ties to the West’s linear imagination. His movement showed me how to become a conduit – rhythmic with my tools and creative intuition. My observations led me to communicate honestly with the visible and invisible around my sculpture”.
Scott’s work lies between the crosshairs of visual art and cultural anthropology.
Driven to comprehend new relationships between rhythm and line in the African Diaspora, Scott’s work has also been strongly influenced by African-American Techno music, Ndyuka and Saramaka graphic art forms, Isamu Noguchi and Makonde sculpture.
His sculptures are in numerous private and public collections, most notably the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and the Hampton University Museum where his seminal piece, “The Judgment of Peter Norton,” was featured in the exhibit, “Two Hundred Years of Art from the Hampton University Museum”.
In 2005, Scott was awarded the Viktor Lowenfeld Sculpture Prize presented by the Hampton University Museum for his work “The Tao of Physics.”
Since 2004, Johnson has held a visual arts teaching residency with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, New York.
Scott’s five-week class, “Listening to the Stone: Rhythm and Inner Space in Stone Sculpture,” begins Jan. 20.
Additional five-week sessions are also offered beginning March 3 and April 7.
Students aged 16 and up may register for one or all sessions.
For rates and more details, visit www.artleagueliregistration.org/catalog/sculpture.
The Art League of Long Island is a not-for-profit visual arts organization that offers classes and workshops for children and adults, from beginner to advanced levels.
Their art gallery hosts a dozen exhibits per year, featuring contemporary works by many local artists.
Admission to the gallery is free and open to the public Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Fridays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and on weekends from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Art League is located at 107 East Deer Park Road in Dix Hills.
For information about classes, exhibits, and events call (631) 462-5400 or visit www.artleagueli.org.
