On display during IGNITE! Festival Oct 14, 5-9pm; Exhibition Oct 12 through Nov 4
A whimsical new fine art installation opens October 12 at the Harrington Gallery's Grand Atrium Lobby Gallery exhibition space in Pleasanton's Firehouse Arts Center. Bay Area artist Johnny Botts is famous in California and beyond for his fanciful works featuring space robots, popular global destinations, and a healthy dose of humor.
The show is timed specifically to be on display during the free IGNITE! Festival celebrating innovative arts and technology slated to fill the Firehouse and surrounding city streets from 5:00 - 9:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 14. For more information, visit
https://www.firehousearts.org. These vibrant paintings will also be on view to the public from October 12 through November 4 during regular opening hours (see below).
Johnny Bott's self-proclaimed interests, in no particular order (well, semi-particular order), are: painting, robots, flying saucers, aliens, cartoons, illustration, science, and science fiction. His formal education is in engineering and business, and he was literally a Silicon Valley "Rocket Scientist," designing equipment for outer space. "Some of that seems to come through with the themes I choose," he jokes.
As a popular Bay Area muralist, Botts has notably in recent years painted murals at Facebook's CA headquarters. A few other recent artistic high-points include selling pieces to Capitol One, and having some artwork published in the Arts and Entertainment section of the New York Times.
Regarding his approach and method, Johnny says: "When I'm painting, I think about the kinds of positive messages I want around me, and put them into my work. From a young age I decided to approach life with a positive attitude. I want my world to be a place that is uplifting, encouraging and playful."
Regarding robots: "Letting go is part of the fun. On impulse, I added a small cartoon robot to one of my paintings, and now robots have completely taken over my artwork."