Ginger-Johnson

Ginger Johnson

Artist’s Statement

Fiber is a medium that surrounds us.

Fiber especially enfolds women.

We see it.

We touch it.

We wear it.

We sew it.

We wash it.

We stand, sit and lay on it.

We put it around our shoulders and the shoulders of our children.

We fold it.

We write and paint on it.

Fiber is part of our universe.

As a fiber artist, I love color and texture – the bolder the better – and feel at my very best when I am surrounded with the beauty of color and the richness of texture.

I derive much of my inspiration from nature. I am fascinated and often in awe of the combinations of color, contrast and blends in nature’s pallet.

My work takes on many forms. I weave clothing and scarves; I knit sweaters and shawls. I use vintage linens to create wearable art. I transform gently used clothing into “green” aprons which reinforces my keen interest in preserving our environment. I embellish my woven watercolors with wire and beads. I create Japanese paper collages and experiment with book arts.

Being a fiber artist allows me to create relationships – the sound of the shuttle moving to and fro as I weave fibers into cloth; the up and down movement as I quilt, the clicking of the needles as I knit, or the simple “ah ha” moment when I pair fabrics and patterns while creating an apron or embellish a watercolor. Each piece that I create is unique for its moment and never repeated.

Each process brings me contentment, pleasure and happiness.

For the last two years, I have taught workshops in “Book Art” through the Island Arts Academy. It is my hope to return in the fall of 2009 with similar classes.

Book Art is a method of teaching developed by English author, educator and artist Paul Johnson. I studied under Mr. Johnson while taking advance degree courses at St. Michael’s College. Mr. Johnson’s well-developed premise is to encourage and advance writing and visual communication skills at all levels – children through adult – by means of creating book art.

With simple tools – paper and scissors and a glue stick– the participants learn how create a simple, or in the case of returning participants, a more elaborate book. The end result is an overall increase in writing skills for all students but with an added bonus - the paper technology often motivates boys to write.

Biography

Ginger Johnson, now a resident of Alburgh, VT, has an outstanding curriculum vitae. She was a partner in The Booksmith, a bookstore located in Burlington, VT. Later, she was a founding partner of The Quiltsmith, a fabric and quilt shop located in Shelburne, VT where she also taught a number of classes in the art of quilting.

In 1985 Johnson returned to teaching and for the next 22 years was a first and second grade teacher at the Charlotte Elementary School, Charlotte, VT.

During her tenure, Johnson was also a consultant for the Institute for Sustainable Communities for whom she conducted workshops on environmental education in Hungary and Bulgaria.

As part of her career development, Johnson completed studies at St. Michael’s College under English book and paper artist Paul Johnson who is internationally recognized for his pioneering work in developing literacy through the book arts. Both author and artist, Paul Johnson’s work is in the collections of the Cooper-Hewett Museum in New York, the National Gallery, the Library of Congress, the University of California at Berkley and Yale University. He is on the UK Craft Council’s select list of British craftspeople.

Ginger Johnson not only began integrating various interdisciplinary projects using Paul Johnson’s methods into her classroom, she also taught fellow teachers the basics of Book Arts.

She later published two successful children’s “how-to” books Paper Folding Fun and Christmas Ornaments. She retired from teaching in 2007.

Johnson is also an artist with an intriguing portfolio. She is a fiber artist specializing in wearable art: weaving, quilting, and knitting and most recently, “green” aprons, created from lightly worn clothing. All of her designs are original and unique.

She is also an artist and works in a variety of medium – watercolors and oils; woven paper collages; Japanese Paper collages with wire and beads and on occasion dabbles in Folk Art.

Johnson creates and exhibits her work at her studio, The Stately Heron Studio, located in Alburgh, VT. She has also exhibited her work at Wild Fibers Studio, Fisk Farm, Island Arts Gallery, and Champlain Islands Artists Organization (CIAO).

Ginger Johnson and her husband Eric winter in West Palm Beach, FL where she volunteers as a docent at the Loggerhead Turtle Marine Center teaching children about sea turtles.

Susan Davis & Associates

Shelburne, VT 05482

802-985-3261

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