Training for War
Pochoir on paper
Support size: 11 1/2 x 16 1/2 inches
Circa 1942
Throughout his early career—spent mostly abroad—William H. Johnson painted in a variety of expressive styles influenced by European masters. Fleeing Nazism, he returned stateside in 1938 and dramatically changed his art in conversation with other innovative Black artists in Harlem. The result is a distinctive body of work full of figures with African mask-like features and colorful patterns.
During this late period, he painted the world around him and recollections of his youth in Florence, South Carolina. Training for War has an implied political comment. During World War II, Black soldiers served in segregated units fighting for a freedom abroad which they did not enjoy at home. Johnson used the American flag three times to reinforce this point. The technique he used is called pochoir, the French term for “stencil”.
As exhibited in:
William H. Johnson, New Beginnings, 2014–2015, Florence County Museum, South Carolina
Roots/Routes: Mobility and Displacement in Art of the American South, 2023, Richardson Family Art Center, Wofford Collecge, Spartanburg, South Carolina
Other works by this artist