Street Musicians c. 1940

William H. Johnson made this painting, Street Musicians, with gouache and pencil on paper. The flat planes of color and simplified shapes give the painting a directness that really speaks to me. I can imagine Johnson carefully laying down each color, building up the composition like a puzzle. There’s the salmon pink sidewalk, the cool minty green wall, and then BAM, these musicians burst forth with their bright orange instruments and snazzy hats. I can almost hear the sounds of the street. The guitarist’s blue suit pops against the warm guitar, and the violinist, well, he just seems lost in the music. It makes me wonder, what kind of tunes were they playing? I bet Johnson felt the rhythm too when he made this. He's part of the band now, and so are we.