Chris Johanson (American, b.1968) is a painter and street artist associated with the San Francisco Mission School, and best known for his graffiti art and playful, cartoon-like style. Born in San Jose, CA, he had no formal artistic training, but began working on figurative drawings and painting on skateboards at an early age. In 1989, he moved to San Francisco’s Mission District, and became part of a group of artists, collectively known as the Mission School, who sought to convey urban realism and social commentary in their graffiti art. Johansson rose to fame after his site-specific installation was featured in the 2002 Whitney Biennial. Drawing inspiration from children’s art and comic strips, Johanson reduces scenes to simple, geometric elements. His recent work focuses on large-scale acrylic paintings, such as Fall Apart and Let It Go (2011) and Contemporary Flower Painting #3 (2011), which feature brightly colored, geometric patterns on wood. He has held solo exhibitions at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, Deitch Projects in New York, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. He lives and works in Portland, OR.
