Chris Johnston

My work is about the land. I am interested in exploring the depths of a landscape – its insides and its stories, through research and my own emotional response to place. I am seeking to explore identity, connection and meaning.

I make my ceramics from my studio in Central Victoria, looking out at the bush. It is a beautiful and engaging place.

At the moment I am making groups of forms, often hollow with the inside hidden from view. I am very aware of the depth of history and story in Australia and how much has been lost or is hidden from our gaze. Why groupings? My purpose is to use repetition to show movement, relationship, sharing, nurturing.

I use a combination of wheel-thrown forms, usually altered, and handbuilding. My surfaces are terra sigillata, using clay from my area, and they are mid-fired.