Work samples

  • Flowers.jpg
    Flowers.jpg
    "Flowers", acrylic and gouache on canvas, 40" x 32", 2020
  • Fire
    Fire
    "Fire", acrylic and gouache on canvas, 28" x 22", 2018
  • Gummi
    Gummi
    "Gummi", acrylic and gouache on canvas, 26"x 32", 2015
  • In Love Again
    In Love Again
    "In Love Again", acrylic and gouache on canvas, 32" x 26", 2015

About John

John Bohl was born in 1983 in New York. He graduated with a BFA in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art and currently lives and works in Baltimore. Recent exhibitions include "40th Anniversary Exhibition" at School 33 in Baltimore and "Flat File" at ICA in Baltimore. He has also produced a variety of prints and publications with Beach Press in London and Oso Press in Los Angeles.

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Paintings 2015 - 2023

My work is created by mining an array of sourced imagery that is manipulated to form otherworldly and sometimes impossible scenarios. The paintings originate by pulling imagery from internet ads, cell phone pictures taken in the studio, stock art, and stills from YouTube videos. Source material is broken apart and layered together in photoshop where these “mash ups” of sorts are formed, then eventually through editing and experimentation, I hope to find a way for these sometimes disparate elements to live together and redefine themselves. I’m interested in what happens when the narrative elements within the painting become obscured, or when there is not quite enough information to put together a cohesive storyline. The ultimate objective is that viewer is inspired to examine the environment within the painting more carefully and come up with their own perspective of what is happening within the work. Through this process I am trying to blur boundaries and explore the distinction between abstraction and representation, fantasy and dystopia, the everyday and the absurd.

 

The works below are primarily airbrushed acrylic on canvas and are created using a combination of hand cut / machine cut stencils. My practice relies greatly on the use of the airbrush and I draw an endless amount of inspiration from its use in car culture, vintage print advertising, and fantasy art. 

  • Fire
    Fire
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 28" x 22", 2018
  • Stationary
    Stationary
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 22" x 18", 2017
  • Stems
    Stems
    acrylic on canvas, 28" x 22", 2021
  • Flowers
    Flowers
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 40" x 32", 2020
  • In Love Again
    In Love Again
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 32" x 26", 2015
  • Backdrop
    Backdrop
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 28" x 22", 2021
  • Float
    Float
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 28" x 22", 2020
  • Crush
    Crush
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 32" x 26", 2015
  • Roll
    Roll
    acrylic on canvas, 28" x 22", 2019
  • Gummi
    Gummi
    acrylic and gouache on canvas, 26" x 32", 2015

Paintings 2012 - 2014

  • X
    X
    acrylic on canvas, 40" x 32", 2012
  • Glitch
    Glitch
    oil on canvas, 14" x 18", 2014
  • Spider
    Spider
    oil and acrylic on canvas, 22" x 28", 2013
  • Stone
    Stone
    acrylic on canvas, 20" x 16", 2014
  • Drop
    Drop
    gouache and acrylic on paper, 19" x 15", 2013
  • Kiss
    Kiss
    gouache and acrylic on paper, 19" x 15", 2013
  • Poster
    Poster
    gouache on canvas, 20" x 16", 2014
  • Hourglass
    Hourglass
    oil and acrylic on canvas, 30" x 22", 2014
  • Metal
    Metal
    acrylic on paper, 28" x 22", 2012
  • Flag
    Flag
    gouache and acrylic on paper, 19" x 15", 2012