Eleanor Johnson
Discovery#73
Egon Investment Scores
Liquidity
2/10
How easily works can be bought and sold at auction
Institutional
6/10
Museum collections, biennials, and institutional recognition
Momentum
8/10
Recent price trends, gallery moves, and market buzz
Discovery
3/10
Undervaluation opportunity relative to peer artists
Risk
4/10
Investment risk factors — higher means more volatile
Market Position
- Pricing
- Note
- Limited secondary market activity - only 4 documented auction lots since 2023
- Context
- Emerging artist with gallery-controlled primary market; auction results primarily for earlier studies and smaller works
- Primary Market
- Contact Gillian Jason Gallery (London) or Harper's Gallery (New York) for current pricing on new works
- Price Trajectory
- Upward trend from color studies ($1,163) to larger narrative works ($6,985)
- Secondary Market Range 2023 2024
- $1,163 - $6,985 USD
- Liquidity
- Availability
- Works available through primary galleries; limited resale activity
- Market Depth
- Thin secondary market; primarily gallery-driven primary market
- Annual Transaction Volume
- Low (4 total auction lots 2023-2024, approximately 2-3 per year)
- Collector Base
- Notable Collectors
- Not publicly disclosed
- Commercial Validation
- Burberry commission (2020) indicates corporate/brand interest
- Institutional Presence
- Works in private and institutional collections internationally; specific institutions not publicly disclosed beyond Smithsonian
- Geographic Distribution
- UK, US, China, Latin America, Africa, Europe (per artist statement)
- Auction History
- Price Range
- $1,163 - $6,985 USD (2023-2024)
- Recent Sales
Title Year Venue Sale Date Status Wool Over Eyes 2021 Phillips New York October 3, 2024 Sold Colour Study After Fragonard (Oil Study n.6) 2018 Auction (venue unspecified) September 17, 2024 Sold Colour Study After Boucher 2018 Auction (venue unspecified) July 3, 2024 Sold Her World; The Land Beneath the Waves 2021 Auction (venue unspecified) July 13, 2023 Sold - Record Price
- $6,985 USD for 'Wool Over Eyes' (2021), Phillips New York, October 3, 2024
- Total Auction Lots
- 4 documented auction results
- Market Position
- Segment
- Emerging contemporary painter with accelerating trajectory
- Comparables
- Artists engaging with Old Masters through contemporary feminist lens - similar to Cecily Brown (influence), Jenny Saville (thematic parallels)
- Momentum Indicators
- Jackson's Art Prize First Prize 2025 (major UK competition)
- Expansion to US representation (Harper's Gallery, New York)
- International fair presence (NADA New York, Tang Contemporary Seoul)
- Phillips consignment interest noted on website
- Feature in Artnet News (February 2026) on ultra-contemporary Old Masters trend
- Investment Outlook
- Risks
- Very limited auction history (only 4 lots)Low secondary market liquidityEarly career stage (first solo exhibition 2023)Price points still very modest ($7K record)No Getty ULAN listing yet
- Strengths
- Strong institutional validation (5 works at Smithsonian Institution)Major prize wins (Jackson's Art Prize 2025)Expanding international representation (UK to US, Asia)Critical endorsement from established curators (Tarka Russell)Art historical engagement aligns with current market trendsYoung age (30 in 2024) with decades of production potential
- Trajectory
- Strong upward momentum; transition from emerging to mid-career underway
Institutional Presence
- Exhibitions
- Art Fairs
Year Fair Gallery 2025 NADA New York Harper's Gallery 2025 Singapore Art Fair (with Art Works) Gillian Jason Gallery 2024 LAPADA Gillian Jason Gallery 2024 Women in Art Fair — - Solo Exhibitions
Title Dates Venue Significance The Feast of Fools November 15, 2023 - January 27, 2024 Gillian Jason Gallery, London Inaugural solo exhibition Solo Exhibition (title TBA) 2026 (scheduled) Harper's Gallery, New York First US solo exhibition - Two Person Exhibitions
Title Dates Venue Time is Always New October 3 - November 16, 2024 Gillian Jason Gallery, London Dancing with Giants 2022-2023 Dew Drop, London Eleanor Johnson + Lydia Makin: Entanglements January 8 - February 14, 2026 Harper's Gallery, New York - Selected Group Exhibitions
Title Year Venue Through the Prism 2023 Gillian Jason Gallery, London Heart of the Matter 2021 Gillian Jason Gallery, London GJG Anniversary Celebration — Gillian Jason Gallery, London BUCOLIA II 2025 Blue Shop Gallery, London The Tourist 2025 Tang Contemporary, Seoul Exhibition at Galerie Hussenot 2022-2023 Galerie Hussenot, Paris
- Publications
- Press Coverage
Title Date Publication Type Why Ultra-Contemporary Artists Are So Obsessed With Old Masters February 13, 2026 Artnet News — Eleanor Johnson: The Feast of Fools - Gillian Jason Gallery London December 2023 ArtLyst Exhibition review Spotlight Artist Eleanor Johnson August 28, 2024 The Wick Culture Artist profile featuring curator Tarka Russell Eleanor Johnson Retells Men's Tales of Women May 16, 2024 Claudia Cheng (editorial platform) In-depth artist interview ELEANOR JOHNSON 2020-2021 She Curates Multi-part interview series Meet Eleanor Johnson, Winner of Jackson's Art Prize 2025 November 7, 2025 Jackson's Art Blog Prize winner interview NYC Selected Gallery Guide, January 2026 January 3, 2026 Two Coats of Paint Exhibition listing - Podcast Appearances
- Date
- April 5, 2021
- Title
- Eleanor Johnson, painter
- Topics
- Career development, influences, witchcraft practice, dream life, Baroque influences
- Podcast
- Considering Art Podcast
- Museum Collections
- Confirmed
- Institution
- Smithsonian Institution
- Works Count
- 5
- Mentioned But Unconfirmed
- Private and institutional collections across UK, US, China, Latin America, Africa, Europe (per artist and gallery statements, specific institutions not named)
- Awards and Recognition
- Commissions
- Year
- 2020 (estimated)
- Client
- Burberry
- Medium
- Oil on canvas, 32 x 25cm series
- Project
- Inside Nature
- Significance
- Major luxury brand commission
- Residencies
- Year
- 2019
- Program
- Palazzo Monti Artist Residency
- Duration
- Two months
- Location
- Brescia, Italy
- Significance
- Prestigious international residency in 13th-century palazzo with frescoes
- Major Awards
Year Significance Award 2025 Major UK painting competition Jackson's Art Prize - First Prize 2018 Early career recognition Young Artist Award - Media Appearances
- Year
- 2020
- Program
- Sky Portrait Artist of the Year
- Achievement
- Participant
Career & Biography
- Identity
- Gender
- Female
- Full Name
- Eleanor Johnson
- Birth Year
- 1994
- Nationality
- British
- Current Location
- Oxfordshire, UK (also works in London)
- Education
- Graduate
- MA in Fine Art, City & Guilds of London Art School, 2023
- Undergraduate
- BA in Art History, University College London (UCL), 2017
- Formative Experience
- Discovered at graduate show by curator Tarka Russell
- Career Timeline
- 2018
- Young Artist Award, Society of Women Artists
- 2019
- Two-month residency at Palazzo Monti, Brescia, Italy
- 2020
- Burberry 'Inside Nature' commission; Sky Portrait Artist of the Year participant
- 2021
- Group exhibitions at Gillian Jason Gallery ('Heart of the Matter')
- 2023
- First solo exhibition 'The Feast of Fools' at Gillian Jason Gallery (Nov 2023-Jan 2024)
- 2024
- Duo exhibition 'Time is Always New' at Gillian Jason Gallery; Women in Art Fair; LAPADA
- 2025
- Jackson's Art Prize First Prize winner; exhibitions in Singapore, NADA New York with Harper's Gallery, BUCOLIA II at Blue Shop Gallery; Tang Contemporary Seoul
- 2026
- Solo exhibition at Harper's Gallery, New York (scheduled)
- Personal Context
- Family
- Parents run garden centre; brothers Tom (photographer) and Sam (filmmaker); partner Gabriel Kenny Ryder (photographer)
- Interests
- Witchcraft practitioner, vivid dream life, Celtic mythology, Baroque art, nature and countryside
- Relationship to Body
- Complex relationship with own body since childhood informs work
- Artistic Philosophy
- Key Influences
- Peter Paul Rubens (flesh and movement), Willem de Kooning (gestural paint handling), Leonora Carrington (feminist role model), Michelangelo, Raphael, Van Dyck, Jan Brueghel the Elder
- Statement 2025
- My work centres on instability and excess, the body and shifting flesh, and layered construction where earlier lines remain visible. I'm interested in what happens when the mind feels full or overwhelmed - when thoughts overlap, speed up or start to slip.
- Working Method
- Fast, intuitive painting process to reach 'unconscious, ungrounded state'; starts each painting by deconstructing and emulating chromatic palettes of Renaissance works
- Studio Practice
- Works from disused barn/loft in Oxfordshire countryside; uses photography of life models; incorporates incense and candles for atmosphere
Artistic Profile
- Style
- Scale
- Large-scale canvases (examples: 180 x 230 cm, 150 x 200 cm)
- Description
- Large-scale gestural paintings balancing abstraction and figuration; chromatic palettes derived from Renaissance masterworks; biomorphic forms in states of becoming; layered construction with visible earlier marks
- Aesthetic Qualities
- Vibrant, explosive color; fleshy, visceral surfaces; dreamlike instability; irreverent absurdity; playful yet confrontational
- Signature Characteristics
- Heavy use of oil paint diluted with linseed oil for liquidity and visceral properties; chromatic backgrounds based on Renaissance palettes; positive-negative space interplay
- Evolution
- 2020 2022
- Medusa series and Ovid narratives - feminist reinterpretation of mythology
- 2023 Present
- More complex layering and pentimento; increased scale; exploration of excess and instability; nature themes (Burberry commission influence); incorporation of contemporary imagery alongside historical references
- Early Work 2018
- Color studies after Old Masters (Fragonard, Boucher) - smaller scale, more direct art historical engagement
- Influences
- Theoretical
- Mikhail Bakhtin (Carnivalesque), feminist art theory
- Contemporary
- Leonora Carrington (feminist role model, surrealist approach)Cecily Brown (acknowledged influence)
- Art Historical
- Peter Paul Rubens (primary - flesh rendering, movement, color)
- Willem de Kooning (paint handling, gestural abstraction)
- Jenny Saville (thematic parallels - body, flesh, female perspective)
- Michelangelo (Sistine Chapel palette and composition)
- Raphael, Van Dyck, Jan Brueghel the Elder, Annibale Carracci, Pontormo
- Visual Language
- Color
- Vibrant, saturated palettes derived from Renaissance sources; heavy use of pink, crimson, flesh tones; chromatic complexity with multiple transparent layers
- Surface
- Thick, viscous paint handling; pentimento (visible revisions); liquified oil creating translucent, pearlescent flesh tones; textural variety from transparent glazes to heavy impasto
- Composition
- Dynamic, Baroque-inspired movement; figures at unusual angles; positive-negative space balance; all-over compositions reminiscent of plafond ceiling frescoes
- Themes and Subjects
- Core Themes
- Female experience and perspective (victimized/liberated, powerless/powerful)Body and flesh (folding, stretching, shifting, abundance)Metamorphosis and transformationExcess, power, overindulgenceInstability and mental overwhelmClassical mythology retold through feminist lens
- Literary Sources
- Ovid's Metamorphoses; folklore and fairy tales; Celtic mythology; Marco Ferrari's 'La Grande Bouffe' (1973 film)
- Recurring Subjects
- Fleshy limbs and fragmented bodiesMythological narratives (Medusa, Apollo and Hyacinthus, Ovid's Metamorphoses)Nature and pastoral scenesSwans and hybrid human-animal formsAmbiguous figures in process of becoming
- Movements and Periods
- Primary Influences
- Baroque (particularly Rubens), Renaissance (Michelangelo, Raphael), Abstract Expressionism (De Kooning)
- Contemporary Context
- Post-internet feminism, revival of figuration, Old Masters in contemporary practice
- Theoretical Framework
- Mikhail Bakhtin's Carnivalesque theory; feminist art history; pentimento as visible process
- Techniques and Mediums
- Technique
- Starts with Renaissance chromatic palette deconstruction; fast, intuitive painting process; uses linseed oil to dilute paint (inspired by De Kooning); layering with pentimento effects; combines photographic reference with historical imagery
- Primary Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Working Process
- Photographs life models with large format camera; collages images from Old Masters, contemporary sources (magazines, digital images); works quickly to maintain unconscious state
Critical Reception
- Critical Reception
- Critical Themes
- Feminist reinterpretation of classical mythology and Old Master paintings
- Engagement with Mikhail Bakhtin's 'Carnivalesque' theory
- Visceral, fleshy painting technique evoking Rubens and De Kooning
- Balance between abstraction and figuration
- Themes of excess, instability, bodily transformation
- Contemporary relevance of classical narratives (particularly regarding abuse and silencing of women)
- Curator Endorsements
Affiliation Context Critic Curator, art advisor, collaborator with The Glucksman Museum (Ireland), FAMM (France) Discovered Johnson at her graduate show; championing her career; featured in The Wick Culture Tarka Russell Owner, Harper's Gallery Quoted in Artnet News (Feb 2026) discussing contemporary artists' engagement with historical antecedents; selected Johnson for gallery representation Harper Levine — — — - Market Positioning by Critics
- Positioned alongside emerging artists reviving Old Master techniques in response to AI/digital age anxiety (Artnet News, Feb 2026); compared to historical precedents of Rubens, De Kooning, Jenny Saville
- Publications and Media
- Artist Website
- www.eleanor-johnson.com
- Critical Visibility
- Moderate - featured in art publications and podcasts but not yet in major journals like Artforum, Frieze, Art in America (based on search results)
- Social Media Presence
- Activity
- 42 posts; professional presentation
- Followers
- 12K (as of search date)
- @eleanorjohnsonstudio
- Engagement
- Strong following for emerging artist
Gallery & Representation
- Fair Presence
- 2024
- Women in Art Fair
- 2025
- NADA New York (Harper's), Singapore with Art Works (Gillian Jason), LAPADA (Gillian Jason)
- Trajectory
- Expanding from UK regional fairs to international contemporary fairs (NADA signals upward mobility)
- Representation
- Primary Galleries
Gallery Relationship Since Tier Gillian Jason Gallery Primary UK representation; multiple solo and group exhibitions Approximately 2021 Established London contemporary gallery Harper's Gallery US representation; NADA New York 2025, solo exhibition scheduled 2026 2025 Mid-tier US gallery founded 1997 - Secondary Galleries
Location Gallery Participation London Blue Shop Gallery BUCOLIA II group exhibition, 2025 Seoul Tang Contemporary The Tourist group exhibition, 2025 Paris Galerie Hussenot Group exhibition, 2022-2023
- Geographic Reach
- Future Expansion
- Harper's Bangkok opening Spring 2026 provides potential Asian market access
- Emerging Presence
- Singapore, Seoul, Paris
- Established Markets
- London (primary), New York (expanding)
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