Buffalo Stories: The Life of LeRoi C. Johnson

Biography:

LeRoi Callwell Johnson of Buffalo, New York, known just as “LeRoi,” has been presenting his artistry for more than 45 years, utilizing his varied thematic tones to craft consistently eye-catching and aesthetically pleasing art forms.

As Mr. Johnson defines his artistic expression as “electric primitive”, his awareness is rooted in the very minimal formal training that he received in a commercial art class while matriculating in the academically oriented Hutchinson Central Technical High School in Buffalo, New York.  His interest in drawing and painting was nurtured during his student years, as he oftentimes utilized this hobby as an outlet for balancing his career aspirations at the time.  While at Georgetown University Law School in Washington, D.C., it appears that his amateurish instinct became the seeds of his prolific expressionism, having created several innovative geometric paintings during the height of this form’s popularity.  A large portion of this artwork would one day be represented in his first major one-man show.

He pinpoints his residency in Washington, DC during the 1970s as the stimulus for his entrée into an art world where his mediums and subjects have evolved and paralleled the times.  While employed as a senior executive with District of Columbia government, he had occasion to patronize many of the city’s world-class collections, influencing his creative impulses as well, as formulating his appreciation for art history.  Resultantly, during this era, he participated in the expansion of the city’s prolific collection by co-founding the Museum of the City of Washington, DC.

With his departure from the District of Columbia, he endured somewhat of a creative hiatus perhaps internalizing his artistic inclinations to travel the world and meet the budding generation of the global world culture.  This self-discovery period occurred during the years 1981-1994.

In 1994, LeRoi returned to painting, utilizing a form which blended modernism, Pan-Africanism, and geometric forms in colorful symbolism. 

In 1996, LeRoi officially and informally re-introduced his artwork to the public, showcased in a hair salon owned by his close friend and mentor, Jon Simon.  By virtue of the popularity of this salon, LeRoi enjoyed great exposure and receptiveness during this display.  One of the salon patrons was Don Metz, then Director of the Burchfield Penney Art Gallery in Buffalo, a relatively new and growing museum that focused on Western New York artists, with its namesake, Charles Burchfield being instrumental in its development.  With Mr. Metz’s leadership, Mr. Johnson’s first one-man show was exhibited at Buffalo Niagara Partnership, a first art show for both.

LeRoi has been featured on the cover of Art Tour  International Magazine.  His work was featured on a major billboard in NYC’s Times Square.  He has appeared in many international articles about himself and his art.  His work is currently featured in a major national commercial (“American Black Film Festival”).  He has artwork on ties sold at the Burchfield Penney Art Center and caps manufactured by New Era sold at the Buffalo Niagara Airport through Visit Buffalo Niagara.

He has had solo shows in New York City, Buffalo, Korea and Singapore, and has been in group shows in London Biennale (3rd Place), Florence Biennale, Egypt Arsenal Art Forum, Rio De Janeiro and throughout Brasil. He has participated in many shows of his mentor, internationally renowned civil rights activist, writer and painter Abdias do Nascimento. He has numerous works in the collections of Canisius College, Roswell Park Memorial Hospital, and Arquival Nationale do Brasil, Rio de Janeiro.  He has been a regular participant in the Art of the Americas (Ottawa City Hall) and has shown at Mississauga Central Public Library in Canada.  Currently, his work is on display in an exhibit at the Burchfield Penney Art Center (“In the Fullness of Time” a retrospective of Buffalo: 100 Artists from 1842-1972”).