Ingrid Johnstone, 9th February 1941 – 31st May 2020

Ingrid was born in Hamburg, Germany and came to Australia in 1962. She studied at East Sydney Tech (National Art School) from 1980 to 1982 Post and achieved Higher Certificates in Painting and Printmaking.

Ingrid completed her Post-Graduate Diploma in Professional Studies at the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales in 1983.

Ingrid joined Sydney Printmakers in the early 80’s, and was a member for over a decade, exhibiting with us both locally and internationally.

Her passion for print making was transferred to her students in her teaching. She formed the group Open Bite 1991 to encourage her students at Ku-ring-gai Art Centre to excel in their printmaking endeavours. This group still exists today – https://www.openbiteprintmakers.org/

Ingrid Johnstone’s energy, zest for life and extensive travel is experienced in her art.  

Ingrid Johnstone’s abstract paintings, imbued with gestural energy, capture the essence of colours that tickle our senses – the contours and shapes of the forms are distinctive with a broad spectrum of colours from mouth-watering magenta, pineapple yellow, sublime aquamarine, cobalt and turquoise blues and candied greens.

In her paintings, her great passion, thick, thin, muted textural, smooth, tonal, luscious, dotted, sprayed, and dripped. Above all her work is very painterly.

Ingrid Johnstone has marvelled at the patience of weavers labouring at the looms in Morocco and the cloths in India, Burma and the Iban people in Sarawak. Her imagery was fired by the Dogon tribes in Africa and the textiles in Peru. She structures the repetitive horizontal and vertical weavings of the threads into her own symbolic patterns. She transcends her imagery into her own landscapes.