Richmond BC, Canada #richmondartgallerybc
Tangible Shadows: Intersections, is a series of sculptural ceramic vessels. The pieces reference Milagros, votive offerings generally shaped as body parts found in Hispanic folk culture. Using drape moulds to bring together human body parts with man-made components such as automotive and bicycle parts, Johnston produces sensuous organic forms in terracotta and porcelain. The intersections created are not only of the parts; there is also the fusion of the negative and positive spaces and the juncture between what is known and what is perceived. The installation of the works in the Gallery creates a chronological journey of the development of the series.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Ian Johnston is an architect turned ceramicist based in Nelson, BC. He has exhibited in Canada and in group exhibitions in the United States since 1997. Johnston studied architecture and education and is a self-taught ceramic artist. Prior to opening his Nelson studio in 1996 he spent five years working at the Bauahuas Academy in post Berlin Wall East Germany. At the Bauhaus, together with two architects, he developed and facilitated a series of semester long international, interdisciplinary workshops around themes of urban renewal and public intervention in a tumultuous time of cultural transformation.
