Spotlight Artist 2024

Linda Clark Johnson is a mixed media artist working in Northern California. She gathers inspiration by observing nature, especially plants. Her hand-printed textile collages quietly celebrate and record the soothing colors and patterns she finds, and her gentle pieces provide viewers with a moment of tranquility and beauty.

Each piece features images of plants she’s gathered and printed on cotton, silk, and linen using a variety of techniques: 

• Cyanotype, produces a distinct blue silhouette when images are exposed in the sun. 

• Eco printing, or botanical contact printing, captures the impressions of leaves using the juices in the plants themselves. 

• Rust prints are created when damp fabric is wrapped around rusty junk and left to make burnt orange and black marks. 

• Linda also uses natural dyes to complete her earthy palette of deep blues, warm browns, and golden tones. 

After the fabric is printed, she stitches her original fabrics together into quilt-inspired compositions for the wall. She adds natural linen borders and wraps the finished pieces around sturdy canvases. There’s an element of serendipity in her process as she joyfully experiments with new materials, works through logistical challenges, and comes up with her own techniques.

Linda’s artwork can be found in public and private collections locally and as far away as the UK and Australia. Her work has been featured in publications in Sacramento and abroad. She holds a BA in Art, a California Teaching Credential and a Masters degree in Arts Education. She enjoyed careers in graphic design and education before turning her attention full time to Art. She teaches cyanotype workshops at her home studio and at venues across California.