Tsehai Johnson, born in 1966, Ethiopia, lives in Denver. Johnson’s ceramic objects and installations act as cultural and social documents transmitting information about the most intimate details of human life. Driving this inquiry are several converging interests, from an exploration of ones desires vs. the realities of life, the close juxtaposition of labor and pleasure in domestic space, and finally the tension between beauty and use as expressed through the objects that populate and decorate the home. Embracing the notion that all aspects of one’s existence, however quotidian and frequently overlooked, are significant Johnson’s work achieves a blend of familiarity and associative malleability inviting reflection upon the intertwined layers of our lives and the labors and pleasures of daily life. Tsehai Johnson received her BA from Reed College in Portland, Oregon in 1989, a BFA from Massachusetts College of Art in 1993 and her MFA from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1999. Her recent solo exhibitions include Sampling at Plus Gallery in 2006 and Fields at Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art in 2005. Notable group exhibits include Anomaly at the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art in 2004, the Exhibition of the Sixth Taiwan Golden Ceramics Award at the Taipei Ceramics Museum in 2000 and Regarding Gloria at White Columns in New York in 2002. She was a recipient of the Colorado Council for the Arts Artist Fellowship in 2003. |
