J.C. Publishing Releases Debut Title on the Life of Elder Anderson Johnson [PRESS RELEASE]
Check out the Anderson Johnson Gallery
View the permanent exhibit of Elder Anderson Johnson and enjoy the work of this legendary folk artist who built his legacy in Newport News.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
J.C. Publishing
P.O. Box 2122
Arlington, Virginia 22202
202 465-2232
J.C. Publishing Releases Debut Title— A Man Inspired by God: The Art, Music, and Ministry of Elder Anderson Johnson
By Yvonne Johnson Carter, Ph.D. and Vernon L. Carter Jr.
August 4, 2020
Arlington, Virginia — What happens to a little boy who is struck by lightning and knocked unconscious when he is just eight years old? Young Anderson Johnson immediately began preaching after he was hit by lightning during a terrible thunderstorm in a cornfield in Lunenburg, Virginia. He became a child prodigy, and as early as age twelve, he pastored a church in Vineland, New Jersey. Two years later, he joined the Ivy Avenue United House of Prayer in Newport News, Virginia, became a protégé to Bishop Charles M. Grace, and established places of worship from New York to Florida for the United House of Prayer. As Johnson matured, he became an exceptional evangelist, a remarkable musician, and a gifted self-taught artist who boldly professed his faith in God. This book traces Johnson’s life from his childhood in Virginia to his solo expeditions across the United States. As a free-spirited traveling evangelist, musician, and gospel singer, Anderson Johnson journeyed throughout the United States singing, preaching, and spreading the word of God.
After traveling for more than forty years, Johnson returned to Virginia, looked back over his life, and reassessed his ministry. He comprehended that his faith had sustained him throughout his life, and he decided his new mission was to teach others how to live by faith. He established the Faith Mission, filled the sanctuary with thousands of paintings, and eventually became an outstanding, self-taught artist. God inspired him to support himself by displaying and selling his art. Patrons in the United States and abroad visited his Faith Mission, and he sold his paintings throughout the nation and as far away as Britain, Israel, and Germany. Elder Johnson passed away in 1998. Today, much of his artwork is permanently housed in the Anderson Johnson Gallery at the Downing-Gross Cultural Arts Center in Newport News.
To order the book, go to https://gorhamprinting.com/book/a-man-inspired-by-God. If you prefer to order the book by mail, send a check or money order in the amount of $29.95 payable to Vernon L. Carter at P.O. Box 2122, Arlington, Virginia 22202. To arrange a book signing or an interview, please call 202 465-2232 or send an email to yjcarter@verizon.net.
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Vernon Carter first met Anderson Johnson in Newport News, Virginia, in the early 1980s when Johnson was not a well-known artist. He and his wife, Yvonne Johnson Carter visited Elder Johnson quite often at his Faith Mission on 26th Street. The two of them co-authored a book entitled, A Man Inspired by God: The Art, Music, and Ministry of Elder Anderson Johnson which is now available for sale.