New Born Babe 1939

William H. Johnson made this painting, New Born Babe, with simple strokes and a palette that feels both earthy and otherworldly. You can really see his hand in the process, the way the paint sits on the surface, almost like he’s carving out the forms. Look at the brown of the figures against the pink sky, the paint is so flat, so direct, it’s like he’s building the image from the ground up. The faces and limbs are all simple shapes filled with single colors, but the white dots highlighting their features give them a certain depth. There's a rhythm in the way he repeats these motifs, it’s almost musical. Johnson’s work reminds me of Marsden Hartley, another artist who wasn’t afraid to embrace simplicity and raw emotion. What I love about Johnson is how he takes these ancient themes and makes them feel so immediate, so personal. It feels so open, and alive.