Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon Portland Community College

Three Kayakers by George Johanson

  • Title: Three Kayakers
  • Artist: George Johanson
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Size: 48"w x 36"h
  • Added to collection: 2006
  • Campus: Rock Creek
  • Location: B9/2 Library

Three figures in black wetsuits loom monumentally in a field of blue like fates or priestesses of a temple.  Johanson often depicts everyday scenes as if imbued with mythic significance.  Built on the subtle interactions of cool Ultramarine and warmer Pthalo blues, this work was purchased for ArtBeat (the PCC district's defunct arts festival) in 2006 when Johanson was featured artist and invited to give an artist's talk at three campuses.  The artist donated his woodcut version of this image to Rock Creek because he thought students would benefit from being able to see how a painting could be translated into another medium.