Rosa Lie Johansson
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Rosa Lie Johansson (died 2004)[1][2] was a Swedish-Mexican painter whose work was recognized with membership in the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana.
Rosa Lie Johansson was born in Askum, Sweden the 9 February 1922. She first studied painting in Gothenburg in the 1940s with government support. In 1952, she continued her art studies at the Academie Belle Arti under Ferruccio Ferrazzi, an Italian painter and sculptor.[1]
Johansson spent much of her life traveling. In 1951, she moved to Italy and traveled in the region, until late in 1952, when she moved to New York. There she joined the Art Students League, collaborating with Will Barnet, known for his graphic work and mural collaboration with José Clemente Orozco.[1][3]
She remained in New York until 1951, when she moved to Mexico, first living in San Miguel Allende, traveling around states such as Guanajuato and Michoacán to study the architecture and culture of central Mexico. During this, economic policy in Mexico allowed Swedish businesspeople to invest in Mexico. A small Swedish community formed in the Colonia Anzures neighborhood of Mexico City. Johansson moved here to find economic and moral support, moving to Mexico's capital, but living alone in her own apartment, with only the company of her cat, Cassandra.[1] She continued to travel in Mexico for much of her life, often in the company of her close friend Alma Reed. She also toured Indonesia in 1969, attracted by its color and mysticism.[1][3]
Johansson eventually identified as Mexican, dressing in Mexican traditional garb, with a particular affinity for Mayan culture, past and present.[1]