Jess Johnson in the Te Whare Hēra Studio, Photographed by Sarah Joy
The concept of world-building lies at the center of Jess Johnson’s work, which reflects her interests in science fiction, language, technology, and theories of consciousness. Over several years, her drawings have documented an increasingly complex fictional world; they are meshworks of cultural symbology, humanoid clones, messianic figures, and alien runes placed in architectural settings. Her drawing practice feeds into installations and collaborations in animation, music, fashion, virtual reality, and textile art. These additional mediums bring the world of her drawings into physical and virtual spaces, providing immersive experiences for audiences.
In 2018, Johnson and her video collaborator Simon Ward developed TERMINUS, a major five-part virtual reality commission that premiered at the National Gallery of Australia. TERMINUS is currently on a multi-year tour throughout Australasia. Jess has been remotely collaborating with Wellington-based video artist Simon Ward for over 10 years, during which the two have resided in different countries for the majority of their work together. The Te Whare Hēra residency allowed them a rare opportunity to share a studio space and workshop for their upcoming projects in person.
During her residency with Te Whare Hēra in August, Jess used the resources and facilities at Toi Rauwhārangi to push her technical process behind her drawings. Having several sessions using the laser cutter in the 3D design workshop, Jess created several unique drawing templates cut out of 3mm acrylic. The drawing templates included stencils and imagery translated from her visual iconography. These include often-used patterns, alien head outlines, unique fonts, decorative borders, etc. The templates have become invaluable in expediting the process of drawing Jess’ compositions. These drawings will likely be shown with Nanzuka Gallery (Japan) at Art Basel, Miami in early 2023
Jess Johnson in the Te Whare Hēra Studio, Photographed by Sarah Joy
During her time in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Jess had the chance to meet with a range of galleries to discuss future shows and collaborations, connecting with Otago museum, Shepperton Gallery, The Global Festival for Creativity & Design, and Hastings Gallery.
The residency gave Jess the locational access to be able to conduct several site visits and logistical meetings for her upcoming exhibition ‘Antireality Perversion Void’, happening at The City Art Gallery between the 17th of December 2022 and to 23rd of April 2023. Jess curated this ceramics show, involving works from artists Janet Beckhouse, Emily Hunt, Rose Salmon, Nichola Shanley, Laurie Steer, and Nathan Taare. Jess Johnson has curated a collection of ceramic objects by makers who work from the underbelly of contemporary ceramics, where the gothic, punk, macabre, mythological, and magical prevail. Read more over on the City Gallery website.
A highlight of Jess’ stay was the elaborate engagement that she made with the Fine Arts cohort at Whiti o Rehua School of Art. Having both a zoom lecture to the Bachelor of Fine Arts and a separate Masterclass workshop for the Masters of Fine Arts, Jess spread knowledge of working as an artist in the individual experiences she has faced. Jess presented topics of professional practice and discussed the multitudes of ways to financially support yourself as an artist, including negotiating relationships with commercial galleries, applying for funding, artist residencies, artist commissions, and collaborations. All being greatly taken on board by our graduating classes.
Jess Johnson is represented by Jack Hanley Gallery, New York; Darren Knight Gallery, Australia; Ivan Anthony Gallery, New Zealand; and Nanzuka Gallery, Tokyo.
To find out more about Jess’ practice, check out her website