IMAGE: Daniel Johnston, mural produced in conjunction with the exhibition Daniel Johnston: I Live My Broken Dreams, 2022. Acrylic Paint. Commissioned by The Contemporary Austin with funds provided by Vans + No Comply. Installation view, The Contemporary Austin – Jones Center on Congress Avenue, 2022. Artwork © Daniel Johnston. Courtesy The Daniel Johnston Trust. Image courtesy The Contemporary Austin. Photograph by Alexa Johnston.
Exhibition
Daniel Johnston Mural
January 22, 2022 - September 26, 2022
Although best known as a musician, Daniel Johnston (b. Sacramento, California, 1961; d. Waller, Texas, 2019) was also an extraordinarily prolific visual artist. Inspired by comic books, he populated his artwork with a fantastical cast of characters and symbols that he developed throughout his lifetime.
Commissioned as part of the artist’s posthumous retrospective, Daniel Johnston: I Live My Broken Dreams, this mural features images and details taken directly from Johnston’s artwork. Alongside good-hearted monsters, winged eyeballs, and ducks, we see some of Johnston’s most prominent characters: the Beast, a multi-headed creature referencing the Book of Revelation; Jeremiah the Innocent, a symbol of pure innocence anchoring his landmark “Hi, How Are You," 1993, mural; Vile Corrupt, Jeremiah’s evil, multi-eyeballed nemesis; and Casper, the ghost of Jeremiah and symbol of spiritual redemption.
The Daniel Johnston mural was commissioned by The Contemporary Austin with funds provided by Vans + No-Comply.
Special thanks to The Daniel Johnston Trust, Story of an Artist (a project of Electric Lady Studios), Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and Topo Chico.
Visit
Come see the mural on the northwest corner of Congress Avenue and 7th Street in downtown Austin!
Learn more about Daniel Johnston: I Live My Broken Dreams and book tickets to visit the exhibition.