Painter Of Celebrity Portraits To Teach VGCC Art Class

Muhammad Ali, former N. C. Gov. Bob Scott, Sammy Davis Jr., actor Richard Boone: these are but a few of the celebrities whose portrait Leonard F. Johnson of Henderson has painted.

And the former “vagabond painter” will share his talents and techniques with an art class to begin Jan. 20 at Vance-Granville Community College. The class will run 24 hours from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Thursdays until March 9 in Room 5230 on the main campus in Vance County.

Johnson currently teaches special education at Eaton-Johnson Middle School, but he has been a professional artist since 1963 when he started traveling to fairs, carnivals and shopping malls. “I basically followed the fair circuit, setting up my booth and painting portraits of people who came by,” he said.

He also painted landscapes and spent considerable time in the artist communities in southern California and Arizona, where he studied with master artists and taught painting classes before returning to the East Coast and the classroom.

While his specialty is portraits, Johnson said he will teach basic art in his VGCC class, utilizing all media. Beginners will learn to use oils, water colors and pencil, and they will learn shading and composition. Johnson promises each student will receive individual instruction in accordance with how they progress.

Cost of the class is $35, payable the first night. Interested persons should call the VGCC Continuing Education office at (252) 492-2061, ext. 3316, to pre-register.