Johanna Bolton

Johanna Bolton is a Swedish artist living in the north east of England. Her residency at Cel del Nord took place in 2023.

We talked about creative play during your residency. What does that mean to you?

When talking about play there’s an unfortunate risk that people think you don’t have a serious attitude towards your art. But I think most creative people recognise play as the most enjoyable part of making, where everything is open, it’s all about process and there are no worries about any outcome.

That is what I would call creative play and for me, it is where all new ideas come from.

I am always excited when I get into the studio, because I never know what the day will bring! That is why art is often difficult but never boring.

‘Using pine needles as a measuring device’

In some ways it feels rebellious to talk about art as play because society feels pretty well geared towards 'producing', but producing for its own sake never strikes me as interesting, or insightful. I don't know if that rings true for you too?

It absolutely rings true. In fact, if I get too clear an idea of where the work is going, I tend to lose interest. I’m constantly chasing surprise.

One of the mostly amazing (and sometimes frustrating) things about working in 3D is that the results are so difficult to predict. In the studio, play happens within parameters — often in response to questions that popped up when I did the previous work “oh, but what happens if I also…?”

Working in a site-responsive way like I did at Cel del Nord — it just opened up such a range of possibilities. I could follow any hunch or impulse in the most free way possible.

So, there were ideas that occurred during my nature walks and from materials I found. In particular, the local strata gave me some new ideas about teeth, and bones and I began thinking about myself as a future fossil. Works were even inspired by a gargantuan crochet needle I found in a local shop. That particular impulse is now continuing in the form of a huge crocheted column back in my studio.

How else did being in a new landscape affect your approach?

To fill your mind with the treasure of new imagery sparks your imagination in new ways. It is exciting, meeting a new landscape, where what I see is affected by my own psychology as well as what the landscape suggests to me.

One of my enduring memories of Cel del Nord is the daily long walks in the hills. I always think best when walking, but the long mountain views and solitude allowed me to delve so much deeper into my thoughts somehow.

You mentioned that you hadn't had a chance to think in that way for quite some time. Did you find that things you had tucked away came up to the surface?

First, I concentrated on observing everything around me, and what really surprised me was how the observations started up some really long complicated thoughts about those things, almost like internal dialogues.

I don’t think I have reached that state of mind for a very long time. So much of normal life is taken up with problem solving, and when I’m in the studio I think about making. I guess on a normal walk memories and fantasies kind of wash over me, but not in that super conscious way.

What have you been working on since the residency?

I had a solo show the week after returning to London. The works were from the last two years and had the theme of folds - inspired by the creases created in worn clothes.

Now I am working on some new directions, including revisiting some of the ideas from the residency like the meeting of body and landscape and thinking about the materiality of the body; as a future fossil, bones and teeth as stones enshrined in human flesh.

I am also sewing and painting some vestments for a new performance. I enjoy activating my sculptural works with my body through performance. I guess it’s the opposite to fossilisation, making the materials move and dance!

To find out more about Johanna and her work visit johannabolton.com

Odette BradyDecember 6, 2023