The Malmö Konsthall Presents Chris Johanson's Playful & Humorous Works

Written by Agnetha Wallenberg Sunday, 20 May 2012 21:40

Malmö, Sweden.-  The Malmö Konsthall is pleased to present "Chris Johanson – Alright Alright", on view through November 27th. The American artist Chris Johanson (born 1968) is a self-taught product of San Francisco’s skateboard and graffiti culture. In his playful and humorous works he comments on what it is like to be human and live in today’s society. He works in widely varying media such as painting, film, installation and music. Johanson grew up in a suburb of San José in California and began his artistic career as a teenager. He painted skateboards and made posters and flyers for his friends, and then gradually began using public space to comment on American society. Even his early drawings show a spontaneous and slightly naïve imagery. He still likes to work in public spaces such as department stores and bookshops or directly in the street environment while also exhibiting at established galleries and museums.

Johanson uses bright colours with a cartoon-like style. He is an acute observer, who in a simple and direct way conveys his observations to us. He still regards himself as somewhat of an outsider in the art world, and therefore does not feel bound by any pre-existing limitations. He enjoys exceeding boundaries – the paint spills outside his contour lines and the speech balloons are too small to contain his text. In Johanson we encounter both the light and dark sides of society. Many of his drawings and paintings are bittersweet reflections about the small and large occurrences of daily life. He addresses important existential questions and ponders human relationships and the future of mankind. The environment has played an increasingly central role in his works, therefore he insists on using second-hand, found wood and discarded paint. Johanson tries to be a positive communicator, and his works are intended to function as a kind of alarm clock. He wants us to begin reflecting on our situation and how we live our lives. The exhibition "Alright Alright" consists of new drawings, paintings and the large scale pyramid shaped installation all made specifically for Malmö Konsthall. The installation includes eight sound pieces made by Johanson’s band IS. The sound pieces in "Alright Alright" are published as the catalogue for the exhibition.


The Malmö Konsthall was opened in 1975 and is one of Europe’s largest exhibition halls for contemporary art. Architect Klas Anshelm created an exhibition hall with great flexibility, generous space and fantastic light. The construction materials are light and simple: concrete, glass, wood and aluminium. Most of the gallery has a ceiling constructed like a latticework of 550 domes with both natural and artificial light sources. The height of the ceiling varies. The light well - with the higher ceiling - has a big sloping skylight towards the north. Klas Anshelm got inspiration for the construction when visiting the sculptor Constantin Brancusi in his Paris studio. The result is a gallery that is both functional and aesthetic. An exhibition space that presents the artist with endless possibilities. Malmö Konsthall arranges exhibitions with an international focus which encompasses both the classics of modern art and current experiments. Previous exhibitions have featured Edvard Munch, Jean Debuffet, Marc Chagall, Claes Oldenburg, Paul Klee, Richard Serra, Antony Gormley, Georg Baselitz, Keith Haring and many others. Visit the exhibition hall's website at ... http://www.konsthall.malmo.se

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