Emily Johnson is a recent graduate from the University of Utah’s History MA program and the new collections registrar at Utah Arts & Museums. During her time at the U, she focused heavily on public history and art, and co-curated an exhibit for the Utah Museum of Fine Arts showcasing printmakers of the Great Depression. A Salt Lake City native, Emily lives downtown and spends her free time hanging out with Stella, her pit bull.

 What hangs above your mantel?

I just moved into a new apartment, and only started placing art and artifacts in the last few days. I don’t actually have a mantel, but in my living room hangs two square prints by Ed Mell of blooming desert flowers, one white and the other orange and red. A print of Jules Breton’s “The Song of the Lark” is hanging by my front door.

What are you reading lately?

For the last two years, everything I’ve read has been for school. The most memorable book I read recently that directly relates to my thesis is called “Flight Maps: Adventures with Nature in Modern America” by Jennifer Price. She’s a hilarious and brilliant environmental historian, and the book is great fun. Having just finished my Master’s thesis, picking up a book that’s not directly related to my academic research still feels a little indulgent and rebellious. I have Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “One Hundred Years of Solitude” and Margaret Atwood’s “Surfacing” on my night stand.

Who would you choose to paint or sculpt your portrait:

I’d love to have Kate Beaton turn me into one of her comics. Seriously, “Hark! A Vagrant” is hilarious and I’d love to be a kind of sassy and impatient historical heroine ala Beaton’s rendition of Queen Elizabeth or Wonder Woman.

15 Bytes

UTAH’S ART MAGAZINE SINCE 2001, 15 Bytes is published by Artists of Utah, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.