Johanna Harmon 1968

Johanna Harmon 1968
Born in Tempe, Arizona in 1968, figure-painter Johanna Harmon remembers being passionate about drawing from as early as seven years old. Unsure of how to apply her vast natural talent in her adult life, she went to work at a design and fabrication firm. In her mid-twenties she began taking numerous classes at the Scottsdale Artists’ School and would also attend workshops at the Denver Art Students League and the Fechin Art Institute in Taos. In the late 90’s she moved with her husband to Colorado and at 30 she set up a studio in her home to become a full-time painter. Johanna paints her figures both accurately and beautifully. Observations and emotions are balanced within her canvases by her mastery of the formal aspects art and her reverence and compassion for her subjects. Her models are mostly females, they differ in their ethnicity and are often times dancers, mothers with their children and young women in contemplative poses. Since committing to a career painting full-time, Johanna has enjoyed a great deal of recognition. She has won numerous awards including the Plein Air Magazine Award of Excellence at the OPA National Juried Exhibition in 2005, the William Schneider OPA Award of Excellence in 2003, and Best of Show at the Scottsdale Artist’s School’s Best and the Brightest Show in 2001. Her work has been featured in such publications as Focus Santa Fe and Southwest Art and on the cover of Arizona Trends. She currently lives just outside of Denver, Colorado