Having spent nearly a decade as Gallery Diet, Nina Johnson says she decided to change the name of her acclaimed gallery to reflect its seriousness. A stalwart of Miami’s contemporary art scene since 2007, Johnson was part of the early wave of Wynwood galleries, but when her lease was up in 2015, she decided it was time to own her own space, and moved to a new digs further north.
Johnson’s roster includes artists such as the Miami-based Nicolas Lobo, whose conceptual practice work explores everything from no-fly zones to Robitussin to swimming pools. A show of Awol Erizku’s paintings made waves in late 2016 for their brilliant color and serial gestures. As the gallerist states, her program is “specifically connected to activities outside of Miami, without turning a blind eye to the benefits of being involved in the day-to-day activities of our Miami-based community.”
For Art Basel, Johnson is excited to host a solo show by Katie Stout. Like several of the artists that Johnson works with, Stout has a design-focused practice that threads the line between art and object. “I’ve been working with Katie since she had her first solo exhibition and I’ve seen her grow tremendously as an artist,” Johnson says. “This show will be a culmination of the past several years of work, including the girl pieces, a new exploration in wood and ceramic, with her usual sinister and critical sense of humor.”
