In Conversation with John Phillip Abbott

John Phillip Abbott was born in Wausau, Wisconsin, and currently lives and works in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He received his MFA from the University of Wisconsin. Selected solo exhibitions include Xippas, Paris, France; Baronian Xippas, Brussels, Belgium; Gleichapel, Paris, France; COUNTY Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida; Pierogi Gallery, Brooklyn, New York; Devening Projects, Chicago, Illinois; Galerie Bertrand, Geneva, Switzerland.

I had the pleasure of asking John what he loves about art the most, what is the most challenging part about creating art, what he is working on next and so much more.

UZOMAH: Your unique use of lines in your artwork, could you share how you craft these lines to guide the flow of color in your pieces?

JOHN: Sometimes lines will be applied first, and other times lines will be in the text itself. The lines and shapes are an extension of the letter forms and often disrupt the text’s legibility. Tape, acrylic and spray paint are used to construct or craft the lines.

U: What is the thing you love about art the most? How does this aspect of art fuel your dedication to keep creating?

J: I love that feeling of losing track of time and just getting lost in making. I experienced this as a kid listening to music while drawing in my room alone at night and never wanted to let it go.

I love that art provides a way for me to attempt making sense of this world and my place in it. It will never make sense so there is always more to be done.

I love other artists work and seeing friends succeed, having exhibitions, or just making new work. It’s inspiring and fuel to keep going. There are so many incredible artists.

U: How do you prepare for a group show and a solo show? What are the differences and similarities in the preparation?

J: I like creating small scale models of a space when having a solo show to play with scale and conversations between work. I guess it feels like composing. Sometimes a show will come together thematically or will be comprised of similarly scaled work or will be variations of the same word or phrase. The curator is composing for group shows. I enjoy seeing their vision come to fruition and how my work operates alongside others.

.Super Greens, Spray paint on raw canvas, 66x62in., 2025

U: Can you provide an in-depth explanation of the technique and materials you use to create art that draws audiences in while presenting your artistic statement?

J: I work predominantly with acrylic and spray paint on raw, unprimed canvas. The spray paint on raw canvas yields an interesting surface texture. I utilize tape to construct letters and the application of tape on raw canvas allows for imperfections like bleeding or overspray which are welcomed. I still very much want my work to read as human made.

U: What is the most challenging aspect of creating art?

J: Having enough time to bring all the ideas to reality.

.Spiritual Healer, Acrylic and spray paint on raw canvas, 72x60in., 2024

U: How do you see your work fitting into the broader art world?

J: I try to not to think too much about if my work fits into the broader art world. It’s not up to me. The zeitgeist is in constant flux so I just need to get on with what I feel I need to do in the moment, embracing what I can control.

U: Your most recent exhibition, held last year, was entitled “The Great Escape.” How and where did the inspiration for this exhibition come from?

J: For this exhibition, I was thinking of spirituality, meditation, patterns, rhythms and the studio practice as escapes from the socio/political calamities plaguing the world and the rise of authoritarianism we are witnessing. It was my aim to create a space that would feel like a refuge. The show included a bean bag I made from a drop cloth and a ZenZen painting hanging above it on the ceiling to take in while lying down. On a wall across the space was a Spirit in the Sky painting.

Freedom, Spray paint on raw canvas, 66x62in., 2025

U: With a strong choice of colors that almost complete the lines in perfect harmony, it makes for brilliant displays of a collaboration of both math and art. Can you go in-depth into how math plays a role in your artmaking process?

J: Often the text is measured out but not always. Sometimes I just feel my way through, and the text and/or lines are a bit skewed. The math I utilize doesn’t extend beyond basic division, fortunately, and is implemented when I want the text and pattern to be locked into the format of the canvas. I find there’s a visual power to this but am careful to not adopt one system to making my work. If things get too measured, too tight, I make work that is more gestural and found.

.Love in Outer Space, Acrylic and spray paint on raw canvas, 72x60in., 2023

U: Is there anything you have not explored artistically yet that you would love to do?

J: I really like the idea of making sculpture. Before deciding to study art formally, I was making sculpture and interested in performance art and romanticize circling back to these forms and others.

U: What are you currently working on?

J: I’ve been making large gold paintings slowly over the last couple of years. I want these to be about alchemy and to conjure the sounds and images and words of Sun Ra and his cosmic vibes. I want these to be like EMDR machines that don’t allow the eye to rest so that the mind is able to conjure up what it needs to heal. But mostly they’re just about things I like. Rawness, the joy of mark making, saturated color, fluorescent and metallic color on unprimed canvas. And the magic of layering and surprising oneself.

I’m also making work now that feels like a response to my 2020 show at Xippas, New Day. They begin unstretched with a gestural, spray-painted grid on raw canvas (a nod to Martin Barré) tacked to the wall. I’m also continuing to make other large paintings and smaller work, too. Last winter, I self-published a book of drawings that are equally bad and great that are just marker on inexpensive printer paper and sometimes nothing more than a crudely written word. I really enjoy making these as they are direct and found and embrace the idea of doing as much as possible with very little.

For more information about John’s artwork and exhibitions, please visit his site here.

In Conversation with John Phillip Abbott

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