FST StudioProjects Fund

IN THE STUDIO WITH TRACI JOHNSON

2022 FST StudioProjects Fund recipient, American artist Traci Johnson (b. 1998) welcomes us in their colorful studio space in Gowanus to discuss how positive energies find their way into their work.

edited by Myriam Erdely, January 2023

First of all, what is the pink fluffy stuff all over your studio walls, what a tremendous color!

As my studio doesn’t have a window, I've covered all my walls with bright pink faux fur to add some sunshine! My studio is located in Red Hook, Brooklyn and is actually a storage building and the 3rd floor is rented out to artists as art studios. I have many older studio mates within TI Art Studios who have been there for 5-10 years and we are a part of Arts Gowanus, a nonprofit that supports artists within the Red Hook/Gowanus area. In my studio we also have a gallery and every year the artists at TI Art Studios get to put on shows free of charge, which is great!

Having won a grant from the FST StudioProjects Fund in 2021, which was created by Frederieke Sanders Taylor, in order to help artists defray the cost of their studios in New York City, how has the FST StudioProjects Fund grant changed your practice? 

It has changed my practice tremendously as this has been a very busy year for me; I’m juggling at least fourteen shows this year, four different art fairs and open studios, and a few installations. This grant has allowed me to not worry about making payments toward my studio for the next six months and has given me the time to really home in on creating bigger scale immersive spaces for my next upcoming shows.

Impressive! Could you tell me what are some of your influences?

Having grown up in the city, whenever I go upstate New York to visit my partner’s family, I’m inspired by the most beautiful mountains and rocky hills and appreciate the serenity of an untouched landscape; organic and strong. Upstate is so quiet, vast and clean. Being able to see the stars there allows my body and mind to take up as much space as I want. I incorporate features like mountains, hills, bodies of water, by converting their characteristics into simple shapes. The color of my artwork borrows from the energy I feel from these particular elements. Being from New York City of course also influences my work. While creating paintings or rugs, the frantic business of the city finds a way into my work.  

What are the types of materials you use to create your rugs?

I use a machine called a tufting gun; the yarn is fed through a hollow needle that penetrates the stretched cloth backing allowing various lengths of yarn to be pushed through. I design soft sculptures using mainly faux fur, ostrich feathers, and yarn which emulates animal fur when touched. These materials are all incorporated into my safe space installations where the goal is to soothe trauma for a moment. I hope to expose the comfort, euphoria, and easy laughter the audience once had as children.

How does color feature in your work?

For me, incorporating vibrant colors within my work is primarily just who I am. I am a naturally energetic person and when I dress in bright colors it offers me happiness. I like to bring myself and my energy into my pieces hence why all my work is intentionally colorful.  

You are a very busy artist, could you share with me a few projects you are working on now?

I am currently preparing new work for my next two solo shows coming up in May and August. I will also be featured in the Affordable Art Fair again in NYC in March, and represented by Established Gallery! My next show “Let the Good Times Roll” is a solo show where I plan to create an immersive environment that envelops the audience into the habitat, so that they may be transported to a state of essentialism in an infinite sense. In the space, I hope the viewer will experience a flow state, they will feel the connections and fluidity between their body and mind. The materials that I discovered as an artist just so happened to be textiles; materials that I associate with comfort. And I thought to myself that is what I need and that is what my community needs. My goal is to create security; a safe haven.