Daniel Johnston with drawings Credit The Daniel Johnston Trust
photo: The Daniel Johnston Trust

Daniel Johnston drawings on display at Electric Lady Studios for Outsider Art Fair

Daniel Johnston with drawings Credit The Daniel Johnston Trust 2
Daniel Johnston with drawings photo: The Daniel Johnston Trust

Over 30 of Daniel Johnston‘s drawings and paintings will be on display at Greenwich Village’s iconic Electric Lady Studios as part of the 2021 Outsider Art Fair in NYC. The collection was curated by artist and musician Gary Panter (who helped design Pee-wee’s Playhouse), and features many works done in magic marker, including frequent Johnston subjects Casper the Friendly Ghost and Captain America.

“In Johnston’s vocabulary, Satan and Captain America are not jokes; they embody internal virtues, aspirations, fears, and resistance that he himself lived out,” Panter said in an essay that accompanies the exhibit.

“Daniel Johnston: Psychedelic Drawings” will be on display via the Outsider Art Fair from January 29 – February 7. The exhibit is open to the public, but it’s by appointment only via the Outsider Art Fair. You’ll also be able to view it online, through their web site.

Electric Lady Studios, which hosted a virtual tribute show to Johnston last year, has been collecting the late artist‘s works. “Art has always been a fixture at Electric Lady –– from the large sci-fi, space murals commissioned by Hendrix, to the decoupage installations done here in the early Seventies,” says Electric Lady managing partner Lee Foster. “I began building my own collection of Daniel’s work and recognized that a separate collection for the studio would be great inspiration for musicians recording here. The creative dialog begins instantly when people see them.”

Separate from the collection curated for the Outsider Art Fair, 13 additional Johnston pieces will remain on permanent display in Electric Lady’s Studio A, including the famed “Symbolical Visions” drawing.

Meanwhile, folks on the West Coast can see some of his work as part of the Daniel Johnston 60th Birthday Celebration at Gallery 30 South in Pasadena, CA. Items on display thought January 29 and are also available for purchase. The gallery writes:

No RSVP is necessary to visit the show M-F 12-6PM, but we are requiring that all attendees wear masks and adhere to safe and proper social distancing while on the premises–and of course we ask that anyone exhibiting signs of illness refrain from entering the gallery. To best observe public health regulations we are barring access to our restroom so please plan your visit accordingly

Head here for more info and the flyer is below.

Daniel Johnston with drawings Credit The Daniel Johnston Trust
photo: The Daniel Johnston Trust

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