Nicolette Johnson is a ceramic artist interested in the vessel. Her work explores our connection to the natural world and the way we assign powerful meaning to objects.
Johnson was born in London, England in 1990, grew up in Texas, USA, and has been based in Meanjin (Brisbane), Australia since 2005. Working in stoneware and employing wheel-throwing, coiling, and sculpting techniques, Johnson applies a modern sensibility to classical forms. Her work is included in the permanent collections of The National Gallery of Victoria, The Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Museum of Brisbane, and the Griffith University Art Museum.
Johnson began working in ceramics in 2015 and continues her practice-led exploration into functional and sculptural ceramic vessels, hand-making and firing each of her works in her Brisbane home studio.
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Biography
1990 Born in United Kingdom
1995-2005 Resided in Texas, USA
2005 Arrived in Brisbane, Australia
Education
2008-2010 Griffith University, Queensland College of Art, Bachelor of Photography (Photojournalism)
2011 Griffith University, Queensland College of Art, Bachelor of Photography (Honours)
Solo Exhibitions
2024 A Fine Mess, CRAFT Victoria, Melbourne (forthcoming)
2023 Deep Field, Paper Boat Press, Brisbane
2020 High Spirits, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Melbourne
2018 Blume, Paper Boat Press, Brisbane
Group Exhibitions
2023 Everyone’s Heard of a Dragon, CRAFT Victoria, Melbourne, VIC
CLAY: Collected Ceramics, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane, QLD
Jugs (Modern Amphora), CRAFT Victoria, Melbourne, VIC
Muswellbrook Art Prize, Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre, NSW
2022 Ten, Paper Boat Press, Brisbane, QLD
Clunes Ceramic Award, Union Bank Art Studio, Clunes, VIC
Drawings You’ve Never Seen, Egg Collective, New York, NY
Persona: 50 Years of Photography at QCA, Queensland College of Art Galleries, Brisbane, QLD
2021 Siliceous Award for Ceramic Excellence, Butter Factory Arts Centre, Cooroy, QLD
Clay Dynasty, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, NSW
2020 Summer Hang, Jan Murphy Gallery, Brisbane, QLD
Spring Group Exhibition, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Melbourne, VIC
Assemblages, Melbourne Art Fair, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Melbourne, VIC
2019 The Churchie National Emerging Art Prize, Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane, QLD
An Idea Needing to be Made, Heide MoMA, Melbourne, VIC
Brisbane Art Design, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane, QLD
Manifest, PW1, Australian Ceramics Triennale, Hobart, TAS
Material Thought, Modern Times, Melbourne, VIC
Designwork #3, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Melbourne, VIC
2018 Designing Women, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, VIC
Unleashed, Artisan, Brisbane, QLD
Relics Today, Modern Times, Melbourne, VIC
Vase & Vessel: An Ode to Morandi, Saint Cloche, Sydney, NSW
Artefacts, Space at Collins, Melbourne, VIC
2017 Emerge, Paper Boat Press, Brisbane, QLD
On Paper, Of Clay, Saint Cloche, Sydney, NSW
Prizes, Awards, and Grants
2023 Finalist, Gwyn Hanssen Pigott Wood Fired Ceramics Award
Finalist, CAQ Siliceous Award for Ceramic Excellence
Finalist, Klytie Pate Ceramics Award
Finalist, Muswellbrook Art Prize
2022 Finalist, Clunes Ceramic Award
2021 Winner, CAQ Siliceous Award for Ceramic Excellence
2020 Finalist, Handcrafted Category, The Design Files Design Awards
Sidney Myer Fund, National Assistance Program for the Arts
2019 Winner, Handcrafted Category, The Design Files Design Awards
Finalist, The Churchie National Emerging Art Prize
Finalist, Little Things Art Prize
Residencies
2024 Artist in Residence, Urban Art Projects (UAP), Brisbane (forthcoming)
2023 Maker in Residence, CRAFT Victoria
Collections
Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, NSW
Griffith University Art Museum, Brisbane, QLD
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, VIC
Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane, QLD
Bendigo Art Gallery, Bendigo, VIC
Ceramic Arts Queensland, QLD
Deloitte, Melbourne, VIC
Commissions
2023 NGV FOCUS Commission, Melbourne Design Fair, Melbourne
2020 Barry Willoughby Bequest, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney
2019 BAD@Mob, Museum of Brisbane, Brisbane
Bibliography
Johnson, Kylie and Tiffany Johnson. Earth & Fire. Thames & Hudson. 2023.
Dias Pires, Karina. Artists at Home. Thames & Hudson. 2022.
