Jay Johnson (model)

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Jay Johnson (born December 30, 1948) is an American business executive and former model. In 1967, Johnson arrived in New York from California with his twin brother Jed Johnson and they were soon absorbed into artist Andy Warhol's social circle. Johnson pursued modeling and supported projects at The Factory. He became President of Jed Johnson Associates Inc. following his brother's death in 1996, he created Jed Johnson Home in 2006.

Life and career[edit]

Jay Johnson was born in Alexandria, Minnesota on December 30, 1948. He was the third of six children, born 15 minutes before his fraternal twin brother Jed Johnson.[1] His family moved to Scottsdale, Arizona when he was 10 years old before settling in Fair Oaks, California.[2] His father was a physician and an amateur pilot with his own airport.[2] Johnson dated future Playboy model Barbi Benton in high school.[2] He graduated from Bella Vista High School in 1967.[1][3]

In 1967, Johnson and his brother Jed dropped out of college and hitchhiked with an AWOL soldier from Sacramento, California to New York City.[4] They found an apartment in the East Village, Manhattan through a heroin addict, got robbed, and lost all their money.[4] When they went to collect money their mother had sent them through Western Union, they were offered a job as messengers.[5] In 1968, Jed delivered a telegram to artist Andy Warhol's Factory and was offered a job on the spot as a custodian by director Paul Morrisey.[6] Morrissey had promised them parts in the film Lonesome Cowboys (1968), but those plans fell through.[6]

Johnson found a job at a nightclub called Arthur's, which was managed by entrepreneur Mickey Deans, who married actress Judy Garland a few months later.[7] Johnson stated that Deans tried to rape him.[7]

Johnson dated actress Jane Forth, whom he introduced to Warhol and she became a Warhol superstar.[8] Johnson recalled that when he and Jed first arrived in New York City they "had not yet recognized that they were gay."[6] The Factory photographer Billy Name helped them come to terms with their sexuality.[2]

Warhol helped the brothers move into an apartment in a safer neighborhood and they were quickly assimilated into his entourage.[9] Jed would become Warhol's live-in boyfriend for 12 years, edited films produced by Warhol and Morrissey, and eventually directed the film Bad (1977).[10] Johnson became a Warhol superstar and pursued professional modeling while assisting with projects at the Factory. Johnson posed for renowned photographers such as Cecil Beaton, Richard Avedon, Jack Mitchell, and Francesco Scavullo.[11][12][13] He also modeled jewelry made by Robert Mapplethorpe in 1970.[14]

In the early 1970s, Johnson became the muse and assistant of fashion designer Giorgio di Sant'Angelo.[15] Johnson was feistier than his soft-spoken twin and considered the "bad boy" of the duo.[15] He struggled with drinking and drug addiction.[4] By 1977, Johnson's brother Jed had begun a decorating business. After Johnson went to rehab he worked as a bookkeeper for his brother's company.[4]

In 1996, Johnson's brother Jed was killed as a passenger aboard TWA Flight 800 when the plane exploded off the coast of Long Island, New York.[16] Johnson took Jed's decorating business Jed Johnson & Associates. In 1997, Johnson nominated Jed's protégé Arthur Dunnam as design director.[17] The company's name was changed to Jed Johnson Associates and later to Arthur Dunnam for Jed Johnson Studio.[18]

In 2006, Johnson created Jed Johnson Home and continues to produce fabrics and furniture for the collection.[17] His longtime partner Tom Cashin is the co-director.[19] They reside in New York City and Brookhaven Hamlet, New York.[20]

In 2022, Johnson appeared in the Netflix docuseries The Andy Warhol Diaries.[21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Bojorquez, Jennifer (1996-12-17). "Treasured Moments". The Sacramento Bee. pp. E1, E5. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  2. ^ a b c d Callahan, Temo (2005). Jed Johnson: Opulent Restraint, Interiors. New York: Rizzoli. ISBN 978-0-8478-2714-5.
  3. ^ Brown, Mareva (July 19, 1996). "Mom's Tragic Instinct: Son was Aboard Plane". The Sacramento Bee: A1, A14.
  4. ^ a b c d Hamilton, William L. (November 10, 2005). "The Surviving Twin, Rearranging the Furniture". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
  5. ^ Nevins, Jake (2023-05-10). "Jay Johnson Remembers the Quiet Luxury and Kindness of His Brother Jed". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-16.
  6. ^ a b c Gopnik, Blake (2020). Warhol. Internet Archive. New York: Ecco. pp. 646–647. ISBN 978-0-06-229839-3.
  7. ^ a b Samaha, Barry (2019-06-27). "Stonewall Riots: Artists Reflect on its Impact". SURFACE. Retrieved 2024-04-29.
  8. ^ "Jane Forth, Teenage Model & Warhol Superstar". 2015-09-20. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  9. ^ Nevins, Jake (2023-05-10). "Jay Johnson Remembers the Quiet Luxury and Kindness of His Brother Jed". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  10. ^ Macias, Ernesto (2022-03-21). "Meet Jed Johnson, the Man Who Stole Andy Warhol's Heart". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  11. ^ Gefter, Philip (October 16, 2020). "Richard Avedon's Wall-Size Ambitions". The New York Times.
  12. ^ "Francesco Scavullo (American, 1921-2004). Jay and Jed Johnson, | Lot #38121". Heritage Auctions. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  13. ^ "Jay and Jed Johnson - 1970 - Jack Mitchell Archives". jackmitchell.com. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  14. ^ Davidson, Annabel (August 16, 2021). "How the bad boy of Seventies photography nurtured a talent for jewellery". The Telegraph.
  15. ^ a b Colacello, Bob (1990). Holy terror : Andy Warhol close up. New York, NY : HarperCollins. pp. 74, 147–148. ISBN 978-0-06-016419-5.
  16. ^ Goldberger, Paul (July 25, 1996). "Jed Johnson: Grace interrupted". New York Times. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Kellogg, Craig (2017-07-27). "The Designer Who Started As a Janitor for Andy Warhol". Architectural Digest. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  18. ^ Kellogg, Craig (July 27, 2017). "Arthur Dunnam Carries Jed Johnson Associates into a New Era".
  19. ^ "Jay Johnson and Tom Cashin". Jed Johnson Home. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  20. ^ Slesin, Suzanne (2016-12-07). "Andy Warhol Paintings Transform this Eclectic Long Island Home". Galerie. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
  21. ^ Laneri, Raquel; Gostin, Nicki (March 9, 2022). "The Andy Warhol Diaries' reveals artist's secret love life after being shot". New York Post.
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