VISIONARY REVUE
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VISIONARY REVUE
OUT OF THE EGG (1943)
(Uit het ei)
What evoloved was his finesse of rendering - an
increasing awareness of nature, light, atmosphere,
and composition. Especially in the notebooks we see
how certain developments began with many sketches
and drawings, and only reached their final expression
in painting after years, indeed, decades of study.
But it is particularly Johra’s themes and subject
matter which manifest the artist’s greatest striving,
movement and discovery. His view onto the world
shifted gradually from imagination to spirit to nature.
Or, to give them their proper names, from Surrealism
to Hermeticism to Pantheism. It is, as if, he began his
explorations in the unconscious, moved on to higher
consciousness, and then settled finally onto a view of
nature enriched by all that had come before.
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PARIS - SPRING 2003
And so, in examining his works, it is the artist’s
own quest that shall guide us. He described his life as
a Symphonie Fantastique, and the metaphor is also
apt for describing the development in his works. As in
music, an opening phrase must first be announced
before it may be developed over time in successive
variations. For Johfra, each new subject in his
painting became an opportunity for further
exploration. An ‘opening work’ announced a new
theme of interest which was then picked up and
expanded in succeeding canvases. It is particularly
the evolution of Johfra’s outlook, as announced in
these ‘opening works’ that will describe his life
journey here as a quest for ever-expanding vision.
L. Caruana
YOUTH AND ACADEMY TRAINING
1919 - 1945
When examing the works from Johfra’s youth
and academy days, it must be kept in mind that the
greater part was destroyed by a falling bomb one
fateful day during World War II. The few black and
white photos that we have do not convey the rich
colours revealed by the few surviving works.
But, above all this, in the early works we find the
initial annunciation of certain themes which would
then resound throughout his life. The first of these is
his unique fascination with the substance of the
imagination, and its many expressions in form,
growth, and movement.
In Out of the Egg (1943) we encounter a dense
mesh of organic, coralline, and aquatic growths,
some like sea anemones, others more transparent
and glowing. At the top of the composition is Johfra
himself in an egg that is cracked open and pierced
through by a nail.
Like the interior landscapes of Tanguy or the
early Dali, these organic forms take root in the
artist’s own mind, giving shape and figure to the
substance of his imagination. It is, as if, the canvas
has become a mirror that momentarily holds still
the ever-transforming mindstuff behind his open
eyes.
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