John Folsom

John Folsom’s practice is focused on constructing the ideal landscape; one that is a representation of land but at the same time, alluring and fictional. The artwork is photography based, in combination with traditional paint media which references the sublime painters of the 19th century.

Folsom’s artwork seeks to promote the natural environment in which we live as a repository for introspective thought, but the artwork also seeks to acknowledge the advancement of conservation. Viewers, with a sense of yearning and romanticism, are able to move the images beyond their specific geography to a place born of personal memory. By this measure, the artwork does not exist in the real world, but is very dependent upon the viewers’ definition to achieve its sense of place.

This photo based artwork also draws on the idea of a memento or a travel keepsake. Folsom completed the Banff International Arts Residency in 2007, from which many of his images stem, as well as from the Pacific Northwest. These images are altered, scanned, de-saturated and further enhanced with other media such as paint, encaustic and tar.

John Folsom graduated from the Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL with a BA in Cinema and Photography. His work has been exhibited extensively throughout North America and can be found in collections around the world, including Christoph Merian Foundation, Basel Switzerland, Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanoogal, TN, Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, TN and the Fulton County Arts Council, Atlanta GA, as well as many private collections.