10/07/2026
Bethany Johnson | Error of Closure
Please join us for the Reception for the Artist Saturday, October 10, 3-5 pm with an Artist Talk at 4 pm.
On view September 26 – November 14, 2026
In her artmaking, Bethany Johnson finds inspiration in the complexities of nature and in humankind’s quest to understand natural phenomena through science. As an artist, she seeks to wed the informational imagery and language of the sciences with the poetry, subjectivity, and emotionality of the visual arts. "Error of Closure" features Johnson’s newest sculptural and collaged works. The sculptures, plinth-like structures reminiscent of geological formations, are made by densely layering reclaimed materials such as discarded books and construction supplies. These sculptures speak to the artist’s fears about environmental degradation and material consumption.
With their refined, smooth surfaces, sleek, geometric forms, and layered, humanmade component parts, the sculptures simultaneously echo the visual language of nature, namely geological stratification, as well as convey careful intentionality and an aura of humanity. They offer many levels of engagement for viewers, from investigations into the formal qualities of each unique sculpture to appraisals of their conceptual underpinnings. In her wall-hanging collages, Johnson melds stone with reclaimed materials. On the surfaces of some of her collages and sculptures, Johnson adds drawings, grids, lines, patterns, and more, many of which allude to nature, its landscapes and vistas. Some of the artworks in "Error of Closure" were completed during Johnson’s recent residency at Willow House in Terlingua, Texas.
Bethany Johnson (b. Indiana, 1985) lives and works in Austin, Texas. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kalamazoo College in Michigan in 2007 and a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting from the University of Texas at Austin in 2011. Johnson is an Associate Professor in the School of Art and Design at Texas State University, where she has taught since 2017. Her work has been exhibited at numerous venues including the Art Museum of Southeast Texas, Beaumont, Art Museum of South Texas, Texas State Galleries, The McKinney Avenue Contemporary, Austin Museum of Art - Laguna Gloria, The Wright Gallery at Texas A&M University, UTSA Art Gallery, Galveston Arts Center, Courtyard Gallery, and the Creative Research Laboratory. She is a recipient of a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant (2023) and has held residencies at Laguna Madre Field Station (2022), Joshua Tree Highlands, CA (2020), Institut für Alles Mögliche, Berlin, Germany (2019), Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT (2019 and 2010), Wild Basin Creative Research Center, Austin, TX (2019), Soaring Gardens Artist Retreat, Laceyville, PA (2013), and Denkmalschmiede Höfgen, Grimma, Germany (2011). In the fall of 2026, Johnson’s art will be exhibited in WaterWork at the Seaholm Intake Building in Austin, Texas (Sept 25 and 26) and in Thus Water Flows Over Weeds at FL3X Space, Texas State Galleries in San Marcos, Texas (Oct 5 - 30).
Moody Gallery is open Tuesday - Friday 10:30 am - 5:00 pm and Saturday 11:00 am - 5:00 pm. For more information, please call the gallery at 713-526-9911.
