Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Jasper Johns

Jasper Johns

2 7.3
An American artist born in 1930 known for pop art and for paintings and prints that use everyday objects
  • proper noun
  • /ˈdʒæspər dʒɒnz/
: Jasper Johns
  • Jasper Johns created the iconic Flag painting in 1954.

Examples

  • The Museum of Modern Art recently acquired a Jasper Johns painting for its permanent collection.

  • A retrospective of Jasper Johns attracted record crowds at the gallery.

  • Art students often study Jasper Johns for his innovative approach to everyday objects.

  • The works of Jasper Johns are celebrated worldwide.

  • The gallery is featuring an exhibit of works by the renowned artist Jasper Johns this month.

  • Many collectors admire the innovative style of Jasper Johns in his famous flag paintings.

  • Critics often discuss the impact of Jasper Johns on the development of pop art in the twentieth century.

Surface Forms

Jasper Johns main

Morphology

Jasper + Johns

This is a proper name referring to a specific person (an American artist); the constituent words 'Jasper' and 'Johns' are personal names and do not convey the meaning 'artist' or the biographical information. Proper names are non-compositional and arbitrary across languages, so a B1 learner who only knows the individual name-words would not be able to derive the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Jasper Johns is the name of an American artist famous for painting simple, everyday things like flags, numbers, and targets. Imagine a jasper stone painted with a flag to help you remember him, because that picture links his name to 'everyday objects' turned into art.