Butler Fine Arts to Feature Joe Johnson Photo Exhibition

Joe Johnson is the next featured artist at Butler Community College’s Erman B. White Gallery of Art, with an exhibition titled “The Playing Field.”

A professor at the University of Missouri, Johnson's works are included in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, The Center for Creative Photography, The Museum of Modern Art, the New York Artist Book Library and the University of Macau, among others. His photographs have been the subject of articles and reviews in Art in America, The New York Times, The Boston Globe and YVI Magazine in the Netherlands.

Johnson describes the exhibition as “exploring architecture at the intersection of religion, capitalism, and media. Working in Reno, Nevada, I chose to foreground the dizzying contrast of labyrinthine gaming interiors with the stark austerity of the surrounding desert,” he said. “I am to an extent celebrating the dazzling spectacle of highly managed recreational space.”

Butler Art Professor Rachel Curtis says she is excited to bring Johnson’s work to campus. “I've known Joe for over thirty years. He's always had such a keen eye and a passion for recording what he sees around him,” said Curtis. “His work is very special because it captures a quality of solitude that is unexpected in places that once hosted concentrated hoards of people.”

An open house and reception for “The Playing Field” will be held on Thursday, November 6 from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Quick Details

What: Joe Johnson’s photo exhibit “The Playing Field”

Where: Erman B. White Gallery of Art, 901 S Haverhill Rd, El Dorado, KS 67042 (700 Building)  

When: November 1 - December 12

Public Reception: Thursday, November 6, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.  

Cost: Free to attend

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