Jasper Johns, a prominent American artist, created an artwork called ‘The Seasons (Spring)’ in 1986. This work is a combination of painting and sculpture techniques that explore the symbols and cycles of growth and aging associated with Spring. Encaustic, a technique Johns was known for using throughout his career, was employed to create a fast-drying, textured surface. The encaustic was composed by heating beeswax, tree sap, and pigment together to create texture.
‘The Seasons (Spring)’ is also characterized by its use of newspaper and fabric dipped in encaustic on the textured surface of the painting. These materials contribute to the tactile aspect of this work while also being reminiscent of Spring through their references to everyday life.
Johns’ fascinating artistic career started with creating precise representations of common images such as targets, letters, numbers and especially flags; which he used as a symbol for national identity. His iconic Flag piece from 1954-55 is an excellent example of formal abstraction utilizing stars and stripes to commemorate America’s values.
In conclusion, Jasper Johns’ work ‘The Seasons (Spring)’ from 1986 explores seasonal symbols through motifs used previously in his other works while implementing various techniques like encaustic as well as incorporating ordinary materials like newspaper into it.
