The cellular world Sydnie Johnson examines under a microscope inspires the designs in the ceramic pottery she creates.
“I am fascinated by the interconnectivity and repeated patterns in nature,” Johnson said. “Looking at the cellular level, I take plants, slice them into sections, stain the cells, view them through a microscope and photograph their cell structures.”
Johnson uses photographs from the microscope to interpret the cellular patterns into ceramic form while remaining mindful of the impact of the raw materials used because they are a limited resource and mining them has ecological and human rights consequences that have shifted her work toward sustainability.
“I use reclaimed clay and glaze and incorporate crushed pottery waste into clay because sustainability is the base on which my practice stands,” she explained. “I experiment with integrating sand, feldspar, rock, and crushed pottery into the clay body and use a recycled glaze as a colour base,” she noted.
Her work is both wheel-thrown and hand-built stoneware fired at cone 6 oxidation. Various surface decoration techniques achieve botanical and cellular structure motifs, including hand carving, stamps, sprigs and press moulds.
Some of her current efforts are based on the cellular structure of a coffee leaf, a Douglas fir, and a lavender leaf.
When Johnson works, her five-year-old daughter, Theta, plays with multi-media pierces. At the same time, 18-month-old Beatrice is perched on Johnson’s back in a carrier or playing in the slip bucket nearby while sharing snacks with the black rabbit that roams around underfoot.
She works out of her Sooke home in what was once her husband, Eric Marchment’s former home gym.
“I was away on a practicum for two weeks and Eric converted the room into a studio for my ceramics,” Johnson said, adding she was pleasantly surprised.
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Johnson has been working in pottery for about 20 years. She has an arts degree from the University of Victoria and fine art from Kwantlen Polytechnic University, where she first began to hone her cellular approach to pottery.
“I learned a lot from David Lloyd at Kwantlen,” she said. “He’s just amazing, and invited me into a student show at the Gallery of B.C. Ceramics in Vancouver. It’s given me a lot of opportunities.”
She created a large mural based on the cellular structure of an orchid root for Lloyd’s class, which started her on the path toward using plant study in her work.
Two of her murals based on the primary and secondary growth of lavender found a home on the walls of the science lab at Kwantlen.
Two of Johnson’s other pieces will be featured at the Sooke Fine Arts Show. Both have the transverse section of a Douglas fir stem spiralling around each form, and both have driftwood handles lashed on with the root from a Douglas fir or kelp.
The Sooke Fine Arts Show is a juried event celebrating its 37th year. The popular show features the work of artists from Vancouver Island and B.C.’s Coastal Islands in various mediums. The show drew more than 7,500 people from throughout the region and beyond last year and runs from July 29 through Aug.7.
Johnson initially submitted her work five years ago, but it didn’t make the cut.
“It was disappointing, but it is a prestigious show, so I knew if I did not get in, it was a learning experience,” she said. “I took the time to improve, take courses with some great potters, participate in various firing methods and delve deeper into my practice.
“I’m humbled and honoured to be part of the show this year and have my work included in a show of such calibre that features the work of so many talented artists.”
Johnson is participating in the Shore-to-Shore ceramic studio tour in October.
Visit Instagram: @sydnieceramics for more on the artist.