Jed Johnson (designer)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Jed Johnson was a designer. He helped to deliver a telegram to Andy Warhol's Factory in 1967 only to be hired to sweep the floors. He lived with Warhol for many years, while directing films and finding success as an interior designer. He died in the TWA Flight 800 explosion in 1996.
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Warhol years
In 1967, Jed and his twin brother Jay moved from Minnesota to Manhattan. Two weeks later, he delivered a telegram to the Decker building which was being renovated by Paul Morrissey before it became the new home of Andy Warhols Factory. Johnson accepted an on the spot job offer to sweep floors, but quickly moved into directing Andy Warhol's Bad and editing several films including Andy Warhol's Dracula and L'Amour.
He picked out a townhouse for Warhol on East 66th street and designed its interiors He lived there with Warhol for a number of years.
Designer
Among other offshoot projects, Johnson designed the offices of Interview Magazine. Through that work, he met Sandra and Peter Brant. He worked with them on 11 projects . He built on this career, eventually joining with a partner Alan Wanzenberg, and taking on clients such as Mick Jagger, Richard Gere, and others.
He was awarded the Interior Design Magazine Hall of Fame Award in 1996.
Death
On July 17, 1996, Johnson was a passenger on TWA Flight 800. Johnson, along with 230 passenger and crew members, were killed when the plane exploded off the coast of Long Island, New York.
Bibliography
Jed Johnson: Opulant Restraint, Jay Johnson, Contribution by Paul Goldberger, Bob Colacello, Pierre Berge and Sandra Brant, November 2005, Rizzoli
