Philip Glass

PHILIP GLASS had to struggle in his early years to be taken seriously. His compositions were perhaps too original and strangely penetrating. He depended on repetition, inserting tiny changes as the piece theme goes on. His signature piece was “Einstein on the Beach” which brought him attention in New York, then throughout Europe. Neither Einstein nor the beach makes an appearance, but the originality carried the day. He kept food on the table by driving a New York taxi and his influence spread incrementally. Today he is the most frequently recorded composer in the classical music world. His unique personal style made him a must as a subject.

Pen and Ink by Michael Johnson

Size: 14x11

About Michael Johnson
The piano has always attracted me as a high-wire act -- taking to the stage with two hours of solo music in a player’s head and risking the chance of audience approval or not. I began as a writer and foreign correspondent but have ended up probing this brave side of the pianist’s personality. I have written at some length about all the pen-and-ink portraits in this exhibit. Some of the drawings have been published in newspapers and magazines, others publicly exhibited. It is gratifying to see how communication just happens. My favorite medium is pen-and-ink on 300-gram mixed-media art paper. I try to avoid cross-hatching for gradations, but achieve the effect with a wash of water over the line on a sable brush.